FIBO Warden's Diary

See you in a few weeks.

2012-01-16T23:34:00.000Z

We're all off to a meeting in Aberdeen on Thursday, so we've started the travel now with Susannah and Grace flying off this afternoon, whilst I will take to the high seas tomorrow morning. Last year saw my two trips on the Good Shepherd result in a 50% strike rate for seasickness, so hopefully I can get 2012 off to a good start as the forecast is pretty reasonable... Having just missed Humpback Whales in several places, it looks like I could do the same again this week as there are two lingering off Balmedie, which we will sail past on the Northlink Ferry on Thursday morning - in the dark. I fully expect them to be breaching off Sheep Rock by Friday as well.

Whilst I may sneak in a blog post next week if anything exciting happens on my travels, it is likely that this will be it until early February, so here are a few pictures from recent days to keep you going!

Two Glaucous Gulls on the South Haven seal.

The Iceland Gulls are still around, a maximum day count of seven has been made so far, although more individuals have been involved.

Sadly two Iceland Gulls have been found dead on South Haven, it seems that they are struggling to find food (we'll send one off for post mortem, so we should find out more about that). The ones Tommy are watching here were trying to catch flies on the shore, bit showed no interest in the variety of crusts and kitchen scraps lobbed in their direction.

There hasn't been much in the way of new birds coming through, but this Grey Heron over the Havens this afternoon was new and species number 48 on the year list.

With a few days of calm weather, some seabirds have been returning to the cliffs. Fulmars are everywhere and can be heard cackling from the Obs.

Guillemots were also back on the cliffs on Saturday, hopefully they'll have a better breeding season this year, but the trend at the moment is not positive.

Grey Seals are a resident around Fair Isle, whatever the weather there are usually at least a few lounging on one or two of the beaches, these ones were at Wirvie.

Another beautiful sunset tonight, which seems like a fitting (or suitable cliched at least) way to end the last blog post for a couple of weeks.

2012-01-14T11:44:00.000Z

One of the really interesting parts of working at FIBO (and there are lots!) is meeting such a variety of people. We owe gratitude to so many people after our first year here, but to start with, I’d just like to say a big thank you to everyone who supported the Obs by visiting us in 2011. It was lovely to meet you all and we're really pleased that so many of you are coming back in 2012.
Another group of people we’d like to say thanks to are the Friends of Fair Isle. Our Friends have supported the Obs throughout our 60 year history, especially recently with the new building. So on behalf of Susannah and myself and the FIBO Directors: ‘Thank You’.
Our Friends will be receiving a newsletter and the 2009/10 Annual Report in the next few weeks (we’re off the island shortly until early February, so all being well it should be with you by March). Any members who haven’t had anything from us by April should get in touch just to make sure we have your correct details.
If you’re not a Friend of Fair Isle, but would like to get the report, now is the time to join. Simply go to the FIBO website http://www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk/Friends_of_FI/friends.htm, print the Bankers Order, gift aid and application form and send them to us (the suggested amount is £10, but you can give more if you like). Any subscription forms received between now and April will be processed for the start of the membership year on 1st April 2012 and we’ll send you the latest newsletter and 2009/10 Annual Report. What’s more, the 2011 Annual Report will also be published this financial year, so you’ll get two newsletters and two Annual Reports (covering three years) for your year’s subscription. With your help we’re able to continue our ornithological work and production of the Annual Report, so once again, thanks.

And last but not least, thanks to all of you who have followed the blog this year and especially those of you who have taken the time to let me know what you think of it. It's the birds that make it worthwhile and there'll hopefully be plenty more of those to write about in 2012.

Friday Sightings.

2012-01-13T23:31:00.000Z

More of the same! Not quite the commonest gull on the island, but a total of seven Iceland Gulls were around today. As noted elsewhere first, most of the birds in the influx are in the older age groups.

This third winter gave a close fly past in South Harbour. The photos seem to show a darker wash to the primaries, which I didn't notice in the field, but then I made the schoolboy mistake of going straight for the camera not the binoculars as it flew by the van. Sloppy.

Seaduck are not especially common around Fair Isle waters, although Common Scoter and Long-tailed Duck have both overwintered this year (along with a Red-breasted Merganser that wasn't seen today). A Little Auk was also in North Haven today and other birds around the island included Water Rail and Whooper Swan.

The Gull Next Door

2012-01-12T22:34:00.000Z

Two of the Iceland Gulls today were smart adults, including this bird at Field.

The Iceland Gull influx continues with huge flocks in the Faroes and considerable numbers in Shetland. Up until now Fair Isle had been graced by three individuals this month (although never more than two in a day), but this morning I was able to watch one from the kitchen window whilst Tommy phoned with news of three on Meoness.

There are generally not lots of gulls around, so no searching through flocks a thousand strong to pick out the white-wingers.

In the end, six were found across the island along with a smart first-winter Glaucous Gull which took gratefully and greedily to the dead seal in South Haven.

Not a great picture, but with the Good Shepherd, the Fair Isle sign and a Glaucous Gull in flight, I thought it captured a bit of the atmosphere of the place at the moment. Also, it was taken from my kitchen, so our 'neighbours' today included both white-winged gull species.

A couple more year-ticks today with a Whooper Swan near the Obs and a Red-throated Diver seen flying over the island, although generally there were not many new birds to report.

I like Whooper Swans and I like sheep... It turns out Whooper Swans win in a fight, this bird on the hill behind the Obs (I'm really not sure why it was there) chased off a whole flock of curious sheep.

With more strong North-westerly winds tonight (the building is creaking a bit even as I speak), perhaps tomorrow will see a few more white-wingers around. The forecast is for a bright day tomorrow, so could be good for some birding. It's still wet underfoot though, as Dave Wheeler points out that we haven't had consecutive days without rain since 18th - 20th November. On the subject of weather, Dave has also provided an interesting summary for December which shows that it was the second coolest since 2001 (only last year was colder), the wettest since 2006, the dullest since 2002 and the windiest since 1998 (with 13 gale days beaten only by the 14 of 1994 since there were 21 in 1980)!

They say the sun shines on the righteous, so I'm not sure what it says when this beam missed me by about a mile today.

Whale meet again.

2012-01-07T23:39:00.000Z

I'd just started writing a blog post when Susannah burst in to announce 'Killer Whales North Haven!'. OK, so the blog can wait as Grace is swaddled, optics are grabbed and we go haring out the Obs. The lucky islander who had phoned had seen a bull, two females and a calf right in the Haven, but they'd just headed out and he hadn't been able to see which way they'd gone. We gambled on North, but checking from Furse and North Light produced nothing (and was so windy we had to hold on to Grace!), so a quick change of direction and south we went.

No orcas here, but dramatic sky and seas in the view west from North Light.

Whilst driving past Dutfield, Susannah saw a mighty fin close in to Goorn. It surfaced twice, but was gone by the time I managed to park and grab my bins - I'd dipped again (hopefully not an omen for the new year)! If we'd stayed in the Obs we'd probably have got great views from the lounge, but that's always the gamble with Killer Whales, and I'm not complaining after my sightings last year. A vigil at South Harbour failed to produce anything cetacean-wise, but at least there were some birds as consolation, with a Merlin chasing Rock Pipits a pleaant sight. Best bird though was the second winter Iceland Gull that dropped in briefly, as Fair Isle finally cashed in on the white-winged bonanza that the rest of Shetland is enjoying!

Beautiful, but totally orcaless.

The drive back also produced six White-fronts and a Pink-foot in with the Greylags, but the ferocious wind generally made birding difficult. With a calmer day forecast for tomorrow, perhaps something may turn up. The good folk at Nature in Shetland have posted on Facebook that January 8th in the past has turned up Tengmalm's Owl, Ross's Gull and Bittern on Shetland, any of those would do me tomorrow (and we'll probably open the Obs early for the season if we get a Tengmalm's!).

The Year So Far.

2012-01-04T23:37:00.000Z

Happy New Year to you all and thanks again to everyone who was in touch recently with Christmas greetings and best wishes for 2012. I'll try to post a reflection of 2011 soon, for now though most of my work time is clearing the office based jobs before the start of the next season (which seems to be looming excitingly ever closer on the horizon). A quick update on the start of 2012 first though:

Finding enough food in the winter storms can be a Little Aukward for some of the seabirds and this one looked like it was struggling a bit in the North Haven today (another was seen flying past South Light).

A total of 38 species were logged on 1st January, with Tommy and Henry starting the day and me joining them after lunch (well, it had been a late Hogmanay). The highlight was probably the lovely first-winter Glaucous Gull floating around the north of the island, although it was nice to see seven European White-fronts back amongst the Greylags after a fortnight or so missing. The following day saw Wigeon and Teal added to the total whilst today was also duck-themed, with Common Scoter, Long-tailed Duck and Red-breasted Merganser getting their first tick of the year in the Log, along with Black-headed Gull, at least a couple of which were in the south of the island.

Not many people would be jealous of a dead seal viewable from the kitchen window, but this unfortunate large bull Grey Seal has had a few envious glances from the south of the island! Fair play to Tommy, who braved the carcass with a knife to encourage the gulls in, perhaps the forecasted NW gales this week will see it come good...

There's plenty of non-bird news as well, but that will have to come later - I'm sure there'll be a few more rainy days in which I can update the blog.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T03:32:00.000Z

No white Christmas this year on Fair Isle, in fact, we're forecast to be getting temperatures in double figures! Whether there is snow or not, it's still a spectacular place to be for the winter. Some of the skies have been really dramatic recently and stormy and sunny spells have battled for dominance. A particularly beautiful sunset followed the winter solstice, as if the sun was announcing that the days were getting longer and she was in charge again (although I didn't have my camera with me that evening, so I'm afraid this view from our lounge window a few days ago will have to do!).

There’s not a lot of bird news to report since my last update, some typical winter birds have included a Glaucous Gull, small numbers of Snow Buntings and a few ducks, including a Common Scoter. The goose flock seems to have dispersed, with no sightings of Bean Geese since 14th and no White-fronts since 17th, although the Greylags are still here (along with a Barnacle Goose), so I’m sure they’ll drag in one or two other species during the winter. A wander round the North of the island hoping for a Snowy Owl (or anything else from that neck of the woods!) didn’t produce much at all, although I did manage an owl when a Long-eared circled over my head at Homisdale as dusk approached. Having come from the direction of the Obs, it’s presumably still roosting unseen in the back garden.

The recent highlight has been a movement of Little Auks on 22nd. Although small numbers are seen most days if you stare out to sea, I noticed 17 in a few minutes from the kitchen window (whilst ‘taking a break’ from end of season reports and other paperwork). I thought it might be worth a proper seawatch, so asked Susannah to keep an eye out while I went and got ready (which involves putting on as many clothes as you can manage for sitting on Buness in December). In the short while it took, Susannah had counted another 197 Little Auks streaming south, so I was quite excited about what sort of total we could end up with in the last hour or so of daylight. I was a bit disappointed then, when after half an hour I’d only seen another seven! Still, a total of 221 isn’t bad.

So, with nothing more to report, I’ll end this post by wishing you all a very Merry Christmas. Thank you to all of you who have sent cards and greetings and to all of you who have read the blog during the year. Don’t forget to feed the birds, and if you’re lucky enough to be visited by Blue Tits, Great Tits or any of the other ‘common’ garden birds, make sure you appreciate them!

Merry Christmas from all the Parnabys.

Just another winter's day.

2011-12-16T17:28:00.001Z

A couple of Whooper Swans are lingering on the island, although these large birds seem to struggle to find food on the island and one has already been found dead. Other wildfowl that have been found in the last couple of days that have presumably succumbed to the weather include a Long-tailed Duck, Scaup and a couple of Eiders. Keep reading though folks, it's not all doom and gloom.

Redwings and Blackbirds are still scattered around the island in reasonable numbers and a couple of Fieldfares and Song Thrush were also seen today. Three Lapwings at Barkland were presumably on the run from cold weather elsewhere. One bird that isn't fleeing the weather is the Long-eared Owl that is still in the Obs garden.

A typical mixed bag of winter weather has seen some relatively pleasant patches between cold, wintry showers, although things have been generally calm in comparison to last week’s big blows.

A common enough bird on Fair Isle, but the small gruop of Purple Sandpipers that can be seen on the grass from the kitchen window are still quite a novelty - I haven't quite got used to these sort of species being 'gadren birds' yet!

It’s been generally the time for getting on with the indoor jobs and end of year work, although there have been a few birds to enjoy. The goose numbers seem to have dwindled a bit today, with no Bean Geese at all noted (although they may well just be hiding somewhere), although there were still 25 White-fronts and a Barnacle Goose.

This smart Barnacle Goose has been lingering near Upper Stoneybrek for a few days.

The White-fronts are mostly European, although the darker bird facing right with the more triangular, orange bill is one of the Greenland subspecies.

Having seen a single Greylag head south over Buness this morning, another single went north there this afternoon (they generally aren’t found in this part of the island, so there’s a chance that birds here are actually on the move somewhere), then a skein of ten flew north out to sea on a seawatch this afternoon. Whether they were newly arrived birds from the east, heading north from elsewhere in the UK, or Fair Isle birds departing for Shetland main can only be guessed at.

Whether the suggestion of goose movement today means the Tundra Beans have actually left remains to be seen, up to 14 have been showing nicely during the week, usually in the Kennaby area. A small group of Pink-feet (below) have also been seen alongside them, providing a nice comparison and keeping goose fans happy!

Also on the seawatch, there was a Little Auk (with another in North Haven later where the Great Northern Diver was again seen), two ‘Blue’ Fulmars amongst thousands of regular ones and 60+ Guillemots.

This Little Auk gave incredible views, although it swam off strongly after a few minutes, so was presumably just having a rest rather than being ill.

An Iceland Gull was in the North Haven briefly yesterday and there must be a chance of more white-wingers at the end of the week, as strong NW winds are forecast, maybe that dead seal in the South Haven will come up trumps yet…

Aye, it's a Taiga.

2011-12-11T22:45:00.000Z

Not much birding today, with the better weather being a chance to try to patch up the traps a bit (or at least stop the flapping bits from flapping, so the predicted stormy weather at the end of the week will have to work harder to cause any more damage). A quick drive round the island after Kirk saw pretty similar numbers of geese to yesterday, although the bird below was one I'd not seen in the group before.

The size, head and neck shape, bill shape and colour all point towards this being a Taiga Bean Goose, quite a different looking beast to most of the accompanying Tundras (although not all the Bean Geese are clear cut to identify to subspecific level). Nick had seen what may have been the same bird whilst I was away, so it probably isn't a new arrival. Few other birds were noted, with the Great Northern Diver still in North Haven, with Long-tailed Ducks here and Finnequoy and a Red-breasted Merganser also at the latter site. The Obs garden held a couple of Robins, with the first Fieldfare I've seen since I returned also here.
With reasonable weather forecast for tomorrow, we'll get a chance to see if there are any surprises lurking around the island (something like that Desert Wheatear that was found in Lerwick this week would be nice!).

Crash! Bang! Wallop!

2011-12-11T01:08:00.000Z

So, it looks like we survived. Damage to the Obs has been minimal and it sounds like the rest of the island has managed without anything too serious going wrong. The winds were quite severe again last night, but today has been calmer (still not exactly tropical mind) and it looks like we could get a couple of days of relatively pleasant weather. However, it is clear that the traps have suffered somewhat. Some damage is expected every winter, usually the catching boxes get rattled and wire needs replacing, but this is the worst I’ve seen it (ok, I know I’ve been here less than a year, but it is pretty bad honest!).

Those of you who know Fair Isle will know that the Vaadal stream isn't meant to look like this.

Even those of you who've never been here will know that the Vaadal trap isn't meant to look like this.

Hjon Dyke has also suffered.

Double Dyke over. The largest trap is in the most trouble, leaning at an alarming rate and both catching boxes and ramps severely damaged.

The slightly better conditions did enable me to get out for most of today to see what birds were around (although it was still windy enough to avoid most of the cliffs) and it was quite a pleasant selection. A brief seawatch from Buness produced six Little Auks, whilst the NW winds had also brought a couple of Glaucous Gulls (an adult and a first winter) to the North of the island. The mid-November falls seem to have resulted in more birds lingering into December than is sometimes the case, with two Long-eared Owls, 49 Blackbirds, 36 Redwing, 2 Robins, 3 Skylarks, Woodcock and a Carrion Crow noted.

It's good to see the LEOs have survived the worst of the weather so far and are now looking happier (well, not happier as Long-eared Owls always look rather cross, but drier at least). One was seen hunting not far from the Obs this afternoon.

With a bit more time to search out goose flocks today the counts were higher, with 16 Tundra Bean Geese, 26 White-fronted Geese (a couple were possibly Greenland birds, but the light was too poor by the time I saw them to make a definite call), nine Pink-feet and 149 Greylags, along with four Whooper Swans. The Great Northern Diver was in North Haven again (and Tommy saw a Long-tailed Duck in South Harbour), with typical winter fare including a smart male Merlin, Golden Plover and 24 Snow Buntings.

Having swapped Christmas presents with all the family down south on our recent travels, we're getting in the festive spirit. This is Grace helping to make a Christmas cake and sporting her 'I didn't realise there was someone behind me when I started eating the ingredients' look.

Welcome Home!

2011-12-09T10:54:00.000Z

No, not on Fair Isle - Nuthatch from the breakfast table at the in-laws was a great bird to catch up with on our mainland jaunt.

After three weeks away, we’ve returned to Fair Isle. I managed not to miss too many birds, although if I’d checked the North Haven the morning that we left I’d have added seen the 13th Great Crested Grebe for Fair Isle (the first island record since 2005)! But most people on the island have been too busy dealing with the effects of the weather to worry about what birds are around. North-west winds have lashed the island, with winds regularly getting above force 10 and lying snow causing some damage and lots of travel disruption. The Good Shepherd sailed on the day we left then not again until the day we came back, whilst the planes have been hampered by strong winds, lying snow and a frozen runway. That meant we had to take the Good Shepherd to get back to the island, although the crossing was too rough for the van to make it, so who knows when we’ll see that again! The crossing also proved too rough for mine and Susannah’s lunches to make it all the way across as well, although Grace slept through virtually the whole thing (thanks in part to Kenny’s ear defenders!). The Shepherd crew were very helpful and Deryk had put the Obs heating on, got some milk out the freezer and brought the minibus down to the harbour having heard we weren’t feeling great (he even didn't mention the Sunderland results, so we must have looked bad!). Along with the greetings and hugs we had at the harbour, it really highlighted one of our favourite things about Fair Isle, that great community spirit.

No sooner had we returned to the island than the wind picked up again, bringing some violent stormy conditions. We survived Wednesday night without too many problems (a few bits of fence have come loose, there’s some guttering in the garden etc) and the wind dropped enough to get out and about for an hour to check the birds. A good start were two Long-eared Owls in the garden, with a few Redwings, Blackbirds and Robins also lingering around the island and a Woodcock flew past the kitchen window. A Great Northern Diver in North Haven was a nice bird (still largely in breeding plumage) and down the island there were several Greylag flocks with 12 White-fronts, two Bean Geese and a couple of Whooper Swans still present.

After the worst of the weather had passed, this rather soggy Long-eared Owl emerged from the Obs garden.

It had a bit of a fly about, presumably to try to dry itself off, before returning to the garden.

At which point it became clear there were two, as a second one emerged (and sat on the mist net). There could have been more hiding in there, but we weren't about to disturb them to find out.

The brief lack of wind though was very much the eye of the storm and as we settled down for the evening, the radio crackled out*, ‘Fair Isle: cyclonic becoming northwesterly severe gale 9 to violent storm 11, occasionally hurricane force 12 at first’. And boy did it mean it, the gusts peaked on the island at 98mph overnight and down the island people were unable to sleep as their houses rattled and unidentified objects flew past the windows. Now the wind has dropped to a more manageable 60mph or so we can get out and see what the damage has been...

*note: artistic licence used here as we get our shipping forecast off the internet like most other people nowadays and even if we did listen to it, using the laptop tends to cut down on the crackle.

The avian highlight from my time off the island was this Greater Yellowlegs in Northumberland, although two Hume's Warblers on Shetland were also good birds.

My sister's wedding was also a major highlight of the trip, as was the baptism of my Godson David Cheetham.

They go up, tiddly, up, up (tomorrow hopefully).

2011-11-15T01:12:00.000Z

Another day with lots of geese (59 Bean, 63 Whitefronts and 21 Pink-feet), although I didn't have much time for birding as we were waiting to hear whether the plane would go or not.

The geese included three Beans and a White-front seen coming in off the sea at South Light, so they seem to be still arriving, although getting an exact count from the various scattered flocks around the island isn't easy. A great sight though!

In the end, the low cloud started lifting just as the light went, so no plane (still almost two weeks to my sister's wedding though, so still plenty of time for us to get off the island...). A bit of a blow, but having just taken the call to say the flight was off (and we'd be trying again at 8am tomorrow), I found two Long-eared Owls in the Vaadal, not a bad consolation! Following that, one of the Sparrowhawks that keeps just evading the traps (even Grace told me the other day that 'you keep missing the Sparrowhawk don't you Daddy') finally made it into the Gully. A few talons to avoid in that lot!

Thanks to Tommy for this pic, more of Tommy's images of this evening's birds at http://fair-isle.blogspot.com/2011/11/sparrow-hawk-long-eared-owls-in-ringing.html

Other than that, I didn't manage to see too much with Chiffchaff and Blackcap still around, Hen Harrier near Setter, Scaup, 4 Woodpigeon and 30 Lapwing, whilst Tommy saw a few bits and pieces down south, including Mealy Redpoll.

The Hen Harrier touched down briefly after performing a brief fly past as we came back from the shop (thanks to Fiona for opening in her lunch break so we could get some food having found out we weren't going to be flying out this morning!).

After the FIBOT Chairman found Hume's Warbler at Kergord and the Vice-Chairman got one in his garden at Trondra, we probably should have managed one on Fair Isle in this spell of south-easterlies, but it isn't going to be me who finds it (unless the plane doesn't go tomorrow...).

Sunday Sightings.

2011-11-14T00:20:00.000Z

I'll try again with a brief summary of sightings after the website crashed trying to load my last attempt. Bah. Really I should be packing as we're due to fly off in the morning after the weather improved enough for the van to leave the island today, so we'll hopefully be on our way round the country visiting our families soon (and possibly taking in the odd good bird, football match and Indian takeaway on the way!).

The Bean Geese were mostly concentrated around wet area near the Houll crop strip today, although a few smaller groups were scattered elsewhere on the island. Today's count of 46 Beans was slightly down on yesterday's record, but still impressive. The other highlights of today included the Rough-legged Buzzard still present in the North where there was also a Common Buzzard, continuing a quite good year for raptors (especially with Merlin, Peregrine and at least three Sparrowhawks on the island today as well - not quite Falsterbo admittedly, but a nice selection).

There seemed to be more movement amongst the goose flocks today, so the day totals were perhaps slight underestimates as we tended to err on the side of caution. There was still a slight increase in White-fronts though, with 74 logged, whilst Greylag and Pink-feet numbers remained similar to yesterday.

Several small groups of Lapwings have arrived in recent days, whilst other new birds today included adult Little Gull in South Harbour, Mistle Thrush at Quoy and Black Redstart and Chiffchaff (only seen briefly, but a pale looking bird) at the Obs.

If I see anything really good in the UK I'll maybe let you know, but otherwise this will probably be my last blog post for a little while. We'll be returning to the Obs on 7th December (weather permitting as always!), so in the meantime please don't think we're ignoring any messages, we'll get back to you as soon as possible when we return!

Beans Means Geese.

2011-11-13T01:08:00.000Z

After hefty SE winds overnight, the morning gradually became calmer, the sun shone and there were still clearly loads of birds about, with Blackbirds the most numerous. What a great day to be on Fair Isle! Early signs were that one or two common migrants (Chiffchaff, Reed Bunting etc) were new in but there wasn’t anything to worry the Birdline hotline with.

It's been a good autumn for Short-eared Owls, with several birds still lingering on the island (although some of today's birds may well have been new arrivals).

Things started picking up when four Short-eared Owls showed well at Pund, what I assumed to be yesterday’s Bean Goose flew over and one of the Olive-backed Pipits reappeared in the Gillie Burn.

The OBP coming rather close shortly before my camera battery went flat. Sadly, I was carrying the wrong spare (as it was also flat). Still, what a bird to be enjoying in the sunshine in mid-November!

As my camera battery had run out, I decided to jump in the Obs people carrier (which was dropping Grace off at North Shirva where she had a great time baking cakes, playing the piano and watching Lion King!) to get my spare and set off to check North. We decided to take the long way round the loop back to the Obs to check out some Scaup Tommy had found in South Harbour (in the end, eight were seen around the south of the island) but were halted in our tracks by the goose flock at Houll. Although we’d been told there were two Tundra Bean Geese heading towards us from Sumburgh, we weren’t expected at least a dozen to be hiding amongst the long grass and pools, especially when the supporting cast appeared to be mostly White-fronts.

Bean Geese and lots of 'em! Sorry about the colours on these pictures, I'd managed to get my camera on the wrong setting and I'm very much a photoshop novice.

Lots of White-fronts as well, beautiful birds.

A quick change of plans then saw me spend the afternoon literally on a wild goose chase checking all the likely spots around the island that could hold flocks. In the end, flocks at Lower Stonybrek, Houll and Kennaby saw an unbelievable total of 59 Bean Geese and 63 White-fronts (along with 20 Pinks and 64 Greylags)! Not only are both of these record counts for Fair Isle, but they may well both be records for Shetland. In the case of Bean Goose the previous Fair Isle record count is 16, so that’s been well and truly smashed. I’m hoping that the Shetland Records Committee will be a bit lenient and I’ll not have to write 59 individual descriptions!

Part of the goose flock at Kennaby.

As if that wasn’t enough, whilst checking the North of the island for any more lurking geese a Rough-legged Buzzard appeared near the mast and gave great views! It’s not a common bird on Fair Isle, so this was a great way to round off the day (although the Great Grey Shrike going into roost in the plantation turned out to be a nice extra bonus!).

What a fantastic bird! Having missed the Rough-leg in Mainland Shetland when bringing our furniture up to Fair Isle in February, this was an even more welcome sight!

More reasonable weather forecast for tomorrow, maybe more birds?

Bean there...

2011-11-12T00:00:00.000Z

The winds continued to blow from the south-east and the birds are still here, with new ones still coming in. Tommy called this afternoon to say a Great Grey Shrike had just left his garden at Haa carrying a freshly-caught bird (Chaffinch or Brambling he thought), on my way down to look for it I found it had come up the island and was perched on the Plantation trap briefly, before it pelted off down the island again. It’s been a good year for this dramatic butcher bird on Fair Isle with one in the spring and at least four in the autumn.

Sadly the shrike remained on the wrong side of the wire for trapping and photography!

The other highlight was an addition to the year list, with a Bean Goose amongst the Greylags at Lower Stoneybrek (which very shortly after being found left the flock and headed off across the island).

Smaller than accompanying Greylags, with a rounded head and slightly bulging lower mandible, field views suggested 'Tundra' Bean Goose, although the photos give the impression of a long-billed bird.

No sign of the OBPs today and not many other headline species to report, although the birding remains good, albeit slightly more challenging today in a stronger, more blustery (and colder) wind.

Only single figures of Jackdaws remain after last months large influx.

The weather has also affected our travel plans as Susannah, Grace and I were meant to be leaving the island today to get to my sister’s wedding in Sunderland, but it will now be Monday at the earliest before we can get off. Thankfully, we’ve given ourselves plenty of slack in the itinerary so we should still get there without any bother. In the meantime, there are worse places to be stuck in SE winds with a continued arrival of birds than Fair Isle and anything I see over the weekend can be considered a bonus!

The Never-ending Autumn!

2011-11-11T00:42:00.000Z

Normally by 10th November it would be last chance saloon for migration, but the continued south-easterly winds are still bringing in more birds. The island suddenly seems rather large with just me left in the Obs (well, Susannah and Grace are here as well obviously but Susannah is busy with the somewhat less glamorous aspects of running the Obs, namely accounts, advertising etc and Grace is busy with watching Peppa Pig so neither of them get to do much birding) and there aren’t enough hours in the day to cover the whole island. Picking and choosing which bits to get to inevitably causes anxiety about what might be getting missed, summed up today by my decision to abandon the west cliffs, which seemed rather quiet, and head inland. Shortly before I did, an Olive-backed Pipit flew up from the cliff top at Hjukni and landed in the grass not far ahead of me (if I’d turned inland ten yards sooner I’d have missed it, so much for the cliffs being quiet!). After getting some lovely views I decided to follow the Gillie Burn back towards the crofts when, about 200 yards later, I flushed an OBP from the grass ahead of me. Sure enough, after getting some great views of this one as well (it was so distracting in fact that I was almost eaten by a pony) I headed back to where I’d left the first bird and it was still there – two OBPs! Multiple records of this smart pipit are not unprecedented on Fair Isle, but it was still a pretty special experience.

The first bird, feeding along the burn near the waterfall into Hjukni Geo.

Bird Two. Whether either of these birds are the individual seen by Double Dyke three days ago is a matter of speculation, but both could be new, given the number of migrants that have come in during the intervening period.

Other migrants again consisted largely of Blackbirds (with several hundred still around), Fieldfares, and Redwings with smaller numbers of Woodcock. Two Long-eared Owls were in Hesti Geo, a Ring Ouzel was in the Gully, a Stonechat was briefly in the Gillie Burn and a few more Chaffinch seemed to have arrived as well. A few wildfowl included a couple of Goldeneye and 11 Pink-feet whilst the Scaup that spent time on the tiny pond in the Haa has now moved to Utra Scrape.
More birds tomorrow? I wouldn’t bet against it…

A couple of Goldfinch arrived in the North nearly a fortnight ago and may be the birds seen at Leogh today. They are a scarce visitor to Fair Isle, so you really appreciate the splash of colour they bring when they drop in.

Swift as a shadow, short as any dream.

2011-11-09T23:54:00.000Z

We’re currently being lashed by SE winds and drizzly conditions that have stopped the Good Shepherd sailing and the planes flying but haven’t stopped a whole variety of birds arriving. The highlight from recent days has been an Olive-backed Pipit on Monday showing nicely near (but sadly not in) the Double Dyke trap before moving to Gilsetter. Another interesting sighting was a Swift at Lericum later that day. Initial views of a relatively slowly flying, pale bird with contrasting wings were certainly enough to get the blood pumping a bit, but looking at the features noted in the field and from photos, it seems that Common Swift is the most likely option. An interesting bird none the less and comfortably the latest record for the island of the species (by about 12 days), I’m happy to receive (either as comments to the blog or as emails to me) any thoughts about it that you may have based on the photos below.

Seen whizzing around the cliffs just west of North Light, the swift eventually headed off west after being chased out to sea by a Merlin. Although never looking very blunt-winged, there were certainly times the wings didn't look very pointed either. Generally the flight wasn't fast (nor was it sluggish) and it seemed 'big-winged' at times. The whole issue of late autumn swift ID is an interesting one, with some identification features of Pallid and Common appearing less reliable than was previoulsy thought.

Although the dark eye stands out from the head, there doesn't appear to be an eye patch. The forehead had only very limited white (very dificult to see in the field), although there seems to be some discussion as to how reliable this is as an identification feature.

In the field the outer primaries were the darkest part of the wing and pale fringing was visible on the upper wing coverts.

The body pluamge was certainly paler than a typical adult Common Swift, but this would be expected in a juvenile (a plumage which is not especially familiar to most British observers). Pale scaling could not be seen on the upperparts (although I woudln't like to say for certain it wasn't there on the views I had) and the underparts were mostly not seen as the bird flew below the cliff top.

In this image the plumage looks darker than in the field and shadowing has created a darker upper-mantle effect than was actually the case. All of the above images have been cropped but otherwise are unaltered.

Today has also been a good day, although there have been no outstanding rarity highlights a good number of commoner birds has made the island an enjoyable place to be. Two Long-eared Owls, 5 Short-eared Owls, Chiffchaff, a few Blackcaps, over 50 Woodcock and 400+ Blackbirds in the North of the island alone show the scale of movement taking place. It’s quite hard to go more than a few yards without a bird taking off from under your feet – real good fun, quality birding.

That's one less Skylark for the Log - a Merlin also enjoys the migrants.

The last of the seasonal staff left on Monday, so once again a big thank you to all of the people who have worked and volunteered for us this year that have helped to make our first season such an enjoyable one. With all the staff now gone, it has left us a bit short of people to actually look for birds, but with Deryk, Tommy and various other folk down the island getting out and about I hope we won’t miss too much. With birds still turning up on the east coast of Britain and the south-easterlies set to continue for a few more days, there’s still a chance of another bird or two as well (and then after that I’ll get down to the office work!).

Fireworks!

2011-11-05T23:49:00.000Z

OK, so the birding maybe wasn’t explosive, but the fireworks weren’t entirely confined to the bonfire at South Light. Unstreaked Acros are maybe not the Roman Candles of the bird world, but one at Dronger eventually showed well enough to identify it as Blyth’s Reed Warbler. That was the main highlight, and some birds appeared to have cleared out, but Robin numbers were up and a small number of Chiffchaffs were scattered around. A Waxwing flew out of the Plantation this morning during the sheep round up (which was also good for getting several sightings of Woodcock and Short-eared Owl!). A Black Redstart at the Obs for its second day was still active several hours after dark, feeding around the external lights!

The Obs garden held a good scatter of migrants, with 3 Brambling dropping in during the afternoon.

With a lovely sunny day and little wind, conditions were great for birding and hopefully tomorrow will bring more of the same, and perhaps a few more birds.

The bonfire and fireworks at South Light were great (many thanks to those who organised them) although Grace didn't like the 'bangy ones' so spent most of the time hiding,

Sightings update.

2011-11-03T13:04:00.000Z

As the south-east winds batter the island (the Met Office is forecasting gale force again) and the rain scuppers any chance of birding productively, it seems like a good day to have a bit of an office catch up. I’ll start with an update on bird sightings from the last week or so, where we never managed the final ‘big rare’ of the season, but had some very enjoyable birding.

Highlights:
Red-necked Grebe – one was swimming in the sheltered water of Gunnawark on 26th, a rare visitor to Fair Isle waters, with just over 20 records but only a couple in the last 15 years.
Spotted Crake – one found in Da Water on 29th where it was mostly very elusive but occasionally showed very well.
Red-breasted Flycatcher – one in Easter Lother on 28th, only our second record of the year.
Great Grey Shrike – one in Hjukni on 25th, which was presumably the bird trapped in the plantation the following day that lingered into November. Another was at the Mast on 28th, with possibly the same bird at Utra on 30th.

The 2nd Great Grey Shrike of the year to be ringed at the Obs.

Little Gull – an adult in South Harbour from 25th, with presumably the same bird also wandering to South Haven on occasions. What was possibly the same adult was found exhausted at North Light on 30th when a juvenile was also in South Harbour.

Dancing on the waves in South Harbour, this adult Little Gull seemed unconcerned by the ferocious winds.

Nathusius’ Pipistrelle – One found in a weak state on 26th was taken into care where it quickly recovered and was released later that evening.

Probably not the natural habitat of a Nathusius' Pipistrelle, this bat appeared to be an exhausted migrant. Bats occur rarely on Fair Isle, with sightings occuring at an average of one every four or five years. Very few are identified to species, although most confirmed sightings on Shetland are of Nathusius' Pipistrelle.

Grey Phalarope – One was seen from South Light on 1st, another record on a good year for this species.

Other migrants:
The weather conditions were perfect for thrush arrivals, with peaks of 1053 Fieldfare (29th), 766 Blackbirds (27th), 623 Redwing (27th) and 87 Song Thrush (26th). A Ring Ouzel (28th) and a couple of Mistle Thrushes were also picked out amongst the swirling masses. Smaller migrants were in shorter supply, with up to 32 Blackcap (26th), an arrival of Robins from 25th that peaked at just 27, 4 Chiffchaff, only small numbers of Goldcrest, a maximum of 3 Black Redstarts, single Stonechats on 25th and from 30th and a couple of Wheatear lingering into November. Finches were poorly represented and included two Goldfinch (from 28th), a couple of Siskins, up to 6 Mealy Redpoll but generally very low numbers of Chaffinch and Brambling. Up to 7 Yellowhammers were around the island along with 8 Reed Buntings, small numbers of Lapland Buntings lingered and Snow Bunting numbers rose to 99.

This young male Yellowhammer lingered at the Obs, others around the island took advantage of the Obs crop strips.

Long-eared Owls were seen daily from 27th, with two birds trapped and ringed, whilst Short-eared Owls were numerous at the end of October with at least 15 seen. The couple of Jackdaws that had been present for at least a week turned out to be the vanguard of an arrival that saw numbers rise to 77 on 30th with a couple or Rooks accompanying them (and 3 moving south on the 1st).

Although variable in appearance, many of the Jackdaws sported the more extensive white collar markings typical of Scandinavian birds.

At least 3 Sparrowhawks were enjoying the thrush passage with other accompanying species including up to 28 Woodcock and 9 Woodpigeon. More unusual was a very late House Martin at Dronger on 2nd.

Spot the Woodcock! Most sightings of this cryptic species are of flushed birds, although nine have also been trapped and occasionally birds are found out in the open like this one at Guidicum.

Wildfowl passage included five Whooper Swan on 1st and 26 Barnacle Geese on 31st and a Grey Plover was circling the island on 26th. At least one first-winter Glaucous Gull lingered in the North of the island. Finally, although seawatching was quiet as would be expected there were a couple of sightings of Little Auks and a Minke Whale was seen just north of the island from the Good Shepherd on 1st.

It's the final countdown...

2011-10-30T09:31:00.000Z

There are only two days left to go of the season - where have the last six months gone?! We've already said goodbye to a couple of staff as Marilyn and Carrie have left, good luck, safe journies and many, many thanks for your work this year. I'll try to find time for a full update of recent sightings later (although there are no 'major' rares to report) but in the meantime, a couple of quick bits of news:

For anyone wanting the chance to own a genuine hand-knitted Fair Isle Kep, make sure you visit Tommy's blog: http://fair-isle.blogspot.com/2011/10/traditional-hand-knit-fair-isle.html where you'll find details of six that are being auctioned to raise funds for the Fair Isle museum (bidding for the first one ends this afternoon).

The weather has finally seen some improvements in terms of the transport to the island, with planes making it in on Thursday for the first time since the previous Friday morning. Not only did that mean a lot of post finally making it to us, but it also saw the return of what seemed like half the islanders who had got stuck on the mainland. As our weekly paper, the Fair Isle Times, is normally produced by the school we thought we would have to do without one (the teaching staff were amongst those unable to make it back on time), that is until an 'unofficial' version appeared:

Fair Isle: Southeasterly severe gale force 9 continuing.

2011-10-25T00:17:00.000+01:00

Breaking waves around the island have covered everything in salt: tough on binoculars, plant life and fancy hair styles.

Well, so far it hasn't really happened for us. The SE winds are here but have been blowing gale force for the day. Unfortunately it has made birding very difficult - when you're lying on your stomach trying to look over Guidicum and it still feels like the wind is about to roll you over, it’s probably time to accept defeat and leave the geos unbirded. What was even more frustrating was that the few areas that could be seen into seemed to hold good numbers of thrushes, with a few Blackcaps, Chaffinches etc also flitting around.

The view from Dutfield, notice the waves breaking over the tip of Buness in the background, it really is a big sea.

The weather seems set to continue in a similar fashion tomorrow, so even if the birds are coming in, we might struggle to find them.

A Greylag Goose became the 88th species to be ringed at the Obs this year.

Lets focus on the positives though: tomorrow’s charts look even better for birds arriving; there are almost certainly things on the island waiting to be found; the winds have got to ease sometime! Signs of arrivals today included four Greenfinches (at Haa and Burkle), a Short-eared Owl on Buness that was presumably a new bird and a brief sighting of a probable ringtail Harrier sp. at the back of Ward Hill whilst two Common Scoter off South Light were new for the month.

Here we go...

2011-10-24T10:09:00.000+01:00

The wind has been strong from the south and the highlights have sometimes been hard to come by, although it’s still been an enjoyable few days. A wintery feel has been provided by the 1st-winter Iceland Gull (20th – 21st) and three Glaucous Gulls (two first-winters and an adult), with several small groups of Snow Buntings totalling over 80 birds (other lingering buntings included up to 3 Lapland Buntings and the Yellowhammer at the Obs). Some summer visitors seem to have finally left, with Bonxies having now departed the island (although one was seen over Buness yesterday). Not many other seabirds were reported, although two Little Auks were off South Light yesterday.
Having eluded me in the nets a few days ago, then taking the micky out of me in the Vaadal trap and escaping just over my shoulder, I finally caught the Sparrowhawk in the Gully trap yesterday morning! Another couple of interesting birds to grace the ringing chits have been a Scaup (caught on a garden pond at the Haa) and a Jack Snipe caught on a dazzling trip last night.

Jack Snipe, so named because of the old English word 'Jack' meaning 'really, really cute'.

Some birds arrived despite the less than ideal conditions, with an impressive thrush fall including 985 Fieldfares and over 160 Redwing and a late Garden Warbler was seen at Easter Lother (on 21st). With the forecast still looking good for this week, the 23rd started to show some hints of an arrival, with a Yellow-browed Warbler, Black Redstart (at the wonderfully named Busta Skank), an increase of Blackcaps (from 2 to 34), 4 Chiffchaff, a Long-eared Owl (from 22nd), 98 Blackbirds and a few more Woodcock, Mealy Redpoll and Brambling. A Common Rosefinch lingered until the 22nd, but we’re all waiting to see what the strong south-easterly winds will bring (apart from a coating of salt spray on the Obs windows!).

It's an ill wind...

2011-10-19T23:25:00.000+01:00

Today brought blasting NW winds, frequent hail showers and a little bit of snow - not ideal conditions for birding. Two Glaucous Gulls (adult and first winter) and a movement of almost 600 Greylags were perhaps not surprising given the wind direction, although the white 'farmyard goose' that turned up with them was a bit more unexpected - has anyone in Iceland lost one?
Seawatching in the last couple of days has provided a few 'Blue' Fulmars, Great Northern Divers and a couple of Little Auks today, whilst on the island top the Fair Isle Mice and Meadow Pipits will have been somewhat concerned by the presence of at least 7 Short-eared Owls and 4 Hen Harriers. Passerines have been in pretty short supply, with two Common Rosefinches, one Yellow-browed Warbler yesterday and a Black Redstart today the pick of the migrants.
A brave effort by the BTO staff who are on holiday here at the moment saw them take part in a mini Bird-race. It was won by the only team that came back to the Obs for all their meals, although whether it was the gen from other guests or something in Roy's enchiladas that saw them triumph we don't know (or maybe it wasn't coincidence that the boss's team won!).

The Havens have provided shelter for several species in the current stormy conditions including Great Northern Divers, Little Auks, Guillemot, Long-tailed Ducks, Grey Phalaropes, Red-breasted Mergansers and Tysties, like this one. The Havens are visible from the lounge with binoculars for those that didn't fancy braving the weather today!

News this afternoon of a male Siberian Rubythroat on Shetland has come as a bit of a blow, although the AW who is due to fly off tomorrow might have timed his trip quite nicely... we wish him luck (through only slightly gritted teeth). However, this is Fair Isle. We've not had a bad year so far and surely something else will turn up here before the month is out. There is a lot of excitement at the forecasts for next week, with some big easterlies possibly on the way. The Obs closes for the winter at the end of October, but we have a few spaces from this weekend if anyone feels like taking a punt on jamming in on 'the big one'. And if it turns up and you're not here, don't say we didn't warn you!

Ahoy me Hearties!

2011-10-18T14:53:00.000+01:00

So we finally got some easterlies after my last blog post, just the one day but that was enough! A large thrush fall occurred on the 13th, which was immediately obvious from the morning trap round, and suddenly the mood of the Obs lifted. In fairness, the mood had not been that bad before, but the long discussion at Log the previous evening about whether the three Blackbirds included the one found dead later on did kind of sum things up for what was a quiet day! Paul (our Assistant Cook) made the most of his day off by heading straight out into the field after trap rounds and finding a LANCEOLATED WARBLER in the Field ditch! Although a bit flighty it did occasionally give good (albeit brief) views.

Lanceolated Warbler at Field, so hard to pick out that my camera focussed on the grass instead of the bird.

A sadder find was a dead Lancey the next day, not far away at Pund. Most observers consider the dead bird to be less streaked than the bird at Field, suggesting a remarkable (but not unprecedented on Fair Isle) simultaneous arrival of this streaky skulker.

The 14th also saw a great call from Jason who identified a Blyth’s Reed Warbler on the beach at Easter Lother, which was later confirmed when the bird was trapped.

Will showing off the Blyth's Reed to an appreciative audience. Whilst watching it, an Olive-backed Pipit flew over calling, although sadly it couldn't be relocated on the ground so it had to be 'one that got away' (although possibly only for a couple of days...).

Other scarcities in this spell included a Little Bunting on Dronger (14th), Bluethroat (14th-16th), Barred Warbler (16th), a couple of Common Rosefinch (including an adult female trapped) and up to 5 Yellow-browed Warblers. Although there were not huge numbers of migrants, some high counts included 50 Blackcaps (15th), 51 Brambling (16th), 36 Goldcrest (14th), whilst a few other notable records included up to 11 Crossbill, Black Redstart, up to 7 Woodcock (including 3 trapped), the first Yellowhammer of the year (on 15th and trapped the following day) and a scattering of Lesser and Mealy Redpolls.

This Yellow Wagtail is lingering around South Harbour.

With so many migrants around, predators followed, including at least 3 ringtail Hen Harriers, 4 Short-eared Owls and a Long-eared Owl at North Light (16th). A Sparrowhawk that spent the day around the feeders and perching on the furled nets then rubbed things in by bouncing out the mistnet when we opened them later on. Maybe we’ll get it tomorrow!

Hen Harriers have been putting on good performances across the island.

With plenty of visitors around, a few people turned to seawatching (always a good way to guarantee a few chances to shout out at Log!) and sightings included a Sooty Shearwater (16th), a few Little Auks, 3 Grey Phalaropes, Iceland Gull (16th) and two Velvet Scoters (17th) which passed behind me as I searched a crop strip at Skadan and completed my day of duck-doom as I had also missed Gadwall and Pintail, all three would have been Fair Isle ticks! I did see the male Shoveler in South Harbour (looking a bit odd bobbing around in a rough sea) and a young Scaup nearby.

This Little Auk was twitchable in North Haven on 16th.

A lingering Grey Phalarope in South Haven was joined by a second bird on 17th. Despite sheltering in the Havens, they picked the rougher South Haven to keep up their reputation as hardy pelagic species!

Just as things seemed to be quietening down again as the winds returned to the west on the morning of 17th, Mark Breaks (visiting ex-Assistant Warden) found a confiding Olive-backed Pipit at Setter. This could be a sign that, despite the unpromising forecast, there could be a few more good birds this week.

Although it did give good views, they were mostly brief as the OBP found plenty of things to hide under.

Aside from the birds, we had a rather fun pirate party on Saturday (the occasional ‘Arrr’ can still be heard around the corridors!) as a way of saying goodbye to Rob (he left on Monday). Best of luck over the winter Rob and thanks again for all your work this year.

'Randy Morgan' (aka Marilyn) proves to be a convincing bucaneer.

Carrie and Jason (and Archie) also get into the spirit of things.

Most of the pictures of Rob I have are at the bar, which isn't a fair reflection of his time here. So here's one of him taking part in the Sheep Hill. Bye for now Rob, see you next year!

October rolls on, but when will we get some easterlies?

2011-10-14T20:42:00.000+01:00

A few days since a roundup, so I’ll just give you some of the facts in what has been a few days dominated by continued westerly winds:
The female Lesser Scaup remained on Buness until 9th, it was trapped and ringed on 7th allowing the special experience of seeing this species in the hand (note that the reports that the bird was reidentified as a Scaup have nothing to do with FIBO and have come as a bit of a puzzle to us). A Citrine Wagtail was at the Walli Burn on 10th, a quite late record after a good year for this species.

Note to British Birds: Knot playing Twister.

A large arrival of thrushes on 9th saw counts of 2892 Redwing, 156 Fieldfare, 78 Song Thrush, 59 Blackbird and a Ring Ouzel, although few other species were involved in the fall. Other passerine migrants were generally quite thin on the ground, with two Yellow-browed Warblers and a Barred Warbler (8th), Hawfinch (trapped at the Obs on 9th), a Spotted Flycatcher until10th, the first autumn Reed Bunting (from 9th), Crossbill (11th), a lingering Flava wagtail, a couple of Greenfinch and a smattering of Lesser and Common Redpolls. Small flocks of Snow Bunting and Lapland Bunting remained scattered across the island, a Short-eared Owl was seen (10th - 11th), there were ringtail Hen Harriers on 6th – 9th and 12th and a Water Rail in the Gully that continued to evade capture.
Wildfowl passage included over 80 Barnacle Geese (10th), Pintail (9th), 3 Velvet Scoter (11th), a few Long-tailed Ducks and a Goldeneye.

This Whooper Swan (Yellow E6F) was ringed at Martin Mere WWT in February 2010 and seen at Welney WWT in winter 2010/2011 before stopping at Setter yesterday. Thanks to the WWT for the very fast feedback on this bird.

Other sightings offshore included Grey Phalarope (11th), Great Northern Diver (12th), Slavonian Grebe, a couple of Arctic Skua, three Arctic Terns (10th), Little Auks (one on 9th and 6 on 10th), Glaucous Gull (8th) and 12 ‘Blue’ Fulmars.

Lots of Fulmars were passing Buness today including birds in various shades of 'grey' and 'blue'.

Birds, or trying to find them, has taken up a lot of our time, but the end of the season is rapidly approaching so a few other jobs are needing to be done. Rob, currently Domestic Volunteer at FIBO (but also seabird researcher and stand in warden this year and holder of various other posts at the Obs in recent years) is heading off for the winter soon, so this Saturday will see his leaving do, although I'm not sure I'll post any of the pictures (it depends on whether I'm the only one who turns up in fancy dress!). We've also taken part in the last Sheep Hill of the season, which was good fun as ever and a bit of an eye-opener for some of our visitors (I'll not say where they are wardens of, but maybe they've been working with seals for too long) who hadn't realised sheep could move so fast!

Will poised and ready for some sheep action.

All going to plan so far, but the sheep seemed to suss out the first timers and made a break for it inbetween them!

Unsurprisingly, the Short-toed Lark disappeared from the Sheep Cru, but the Lapland Bunting remained for the day - it's even in this picture if you look closely.

FIRST FOR FAIR ISLE!!!

2011-10-07T15:25:00.001+01:00

OK, so it maybe isn't in quite in the same league as the Blackburnian Warbler on this day in 1988, but a LESSER SCAUP found by Obs guests on a tiny rock pool on Buness is, none the less, a first for Fair Isle, and that isn't an easy accolade to achieve with an island list of over 375 species! Any American visitor is always a bit special and this one has given particularly good views allowing us to take in the fine details of the identification of this lovely little duck.

Elsewhere, things seem pretty quiet, although the Short-toed Lark is still here (now at Pund), but there is still plenty of the day left. I'll update later with a few more details, but for now there are birds waiting to be found!

2011-10-07T09:26:00.000+01:00

'Mixed' weather has at least seen several lovely rainbows!

The weather has been dominated by westerly winds of varying strengths, resulting in birding becoming a bit challenging at times and transport to the island becoming disrupted.

With the Good Shepherd unable to sail, a freight plane had to bring in vegetables, milk etc.

Bird-wise, the highlight was a Short-toed Lark in the Vaasetter and Sheep Cru area, the last two sightings (dating back to mid-September) have also come from the same area, so it’s not entirely clear how many individuals have been involved, but this seems likely to be the 4th or 5th of the year.

The Short-toed Lark gave great views, although full credit to the visiting birder who had never seen one before but was so worried about missing his plane (and therefore his girlfriend's birthday) that he didn't even ask to stop the minibus as it drove past the crowd of birders watching the bird!

For much of the time, the Short-toed Lark was associating with a Lapland Bunting, a nice double act!

Wednesday saw a movement of wildfowl, with 99 Whooper Swans, 363 Pink-feet and 406 Greylags passing over and two Grey Phalaropes were seen off South Light, the first record of the year of this scarce species. New birds on the island were harder to come by, although a ringtail Hen Harrier was seen on Thursday, a Yellow Wagtail lingered down south, and Grey Wagtail and Spotted Flycatcher were both seen on 6th. Two Yellow-browed Warblers on 5th has decreased to one the following day and a selection of finches and buntings seemed to be on the move (although so far at least three Little Buntings have been seen this autumn, but no Reed Buntings or Yellowhammers!).

Common Redpoll outside the Obs, more redpolls can perhaps be expected in the NW winds - but of what (sub)species...

With gale force NW winds over night, we could expect a quiet day today, but today is the 23rd anniversary of a group of birders heading to the north of the island in ‘wet and unpromising conditions’ and finding a Blackburnian Warbler near Furse. What better motivation could we need?

The weather has certainly been variable, with hailstones lying like snow for a while yesterday morning!

First of all though, it’s a roundup of the hill sheep, so it’s all hands on deck to help with that.

And plenty of squally storms have blown through - you can see them coming, but you can't get away from them when you're on census (unless you dodge into a croft for tea and cake like some of the wardening team!).

Gale warnings.

2011-10-04T21:34:00.000+01:00

A very windy couple of days has seen disruption to the transport on and off the island and not much happening in the way of new birds. Although we’ve not done Log yet today (so there may yet be a few surprises!), it seems that arrivals have been pretty limited, or the birds are keeping their heads down in the gale force westerlies. There’s a suggestion that the winds may ease for a while in the morning, so hopefully any hidden goodies may be discovered tomorrow!

The highlight from SE census was a Hawfinch under the feeders at Haa, with a juvenile Yellow Wagtail nearby on the beach. The Hawfinch was ringed, so is presumably the bird caught at the Obs a couple of days ago. Interestingly, there were Hawfinch sightings yesterday at the Obs, Haa and Springfield, which probably would have gone in the Log as at least two different birds except for the fact they were all ringed, so were presumably all the same bird wandering around.

On the subject of ringing, I never did get round to mentioning the results of the colour-ringed Rosefinch (see blog post on 21st Sep). It turned out to have been ringed as a youngster at Ringenäs, outside the town of Halmstad, on the west-coast of Sweden on the 25th August. Although there is a breeding population of Rosefinches here, this could have been a juvenile heading west through the area from further afield. It is certainly a classic example of a bird heading in totally the opposite direction to where it should have been going at this time of year. Thanks to Kåre Ström for the information.

Well, time to do Log, so more updates tomorrow if there’s anything to report.

A few wildfowl are on the move, including small numbers of Barnacle Geese with larger skeins of Greylags and Pink-feet seen on and over the island. One of the Greylags seen today was neck-collared, so we're waiting to here details of that bird.

Autumn Excitement.

2011-10-03T00:28:00.003+01:00

It's not just birds, this Angle Shades is one of several interesting moths trapped recently.

It's pretty hectic here at the moment with some good birding, lots of ringing and a very busy Obs, so sorry for the lack of updates in the last couple of days. I'll keep this post brief as I need to get to bed soon - I'm back on census, bar duties and trap round rotas from tomorrow. I’m feeling well rested and recovered and want to say thanks to everyone who has asked how I am getting on and sent their best wishes (and that's the last time I mention my appendix on the blog!).

Bags of fun: Saturday saw many birds ringed, with Redwings and Blackcaps being caught in numbers both in the Heligolands and the Obs garden.

Some calm weather has brought some good movements of birds, especially on Saturday (with a bit of a clear out on Sunday) and a few more exciting species have turned up.

Over 1000 Redwings were counted on Saturday, an impressive movement.

Saturday sightings: Olive-backed Pipit (found by Will at North Light then relocated to North Restengeo), Blyth’s Reed Warbler (trapped in the evening on the South Haven beach), Citrine Wagtail (the lingering bird, although another circling over Gilsetter may have been a new one), Rose-coloured Starling (the juv at North Light), Melodious Warbler (still at Shirva), Little Bunting, 15 Yellow-browed Warblers, Bluethroat, 2 Barred Warbler, Red-breasted Flycatcher, 62 Blackcap, 5 Mealy Redpoll, 2 Crossbill, 3 Hawfinch and 10 Lapland Buntings.

Yellow-browed Warblers are the commonest Phyllosc on the island at the moment, with another three trapped over the weekend.

Sunday sightings: Citrine Wagtail, Rose-coloured Starling, Melodious Warbler, 2 Little Bunting, Barred Warbler, 10 Yellow-browed Warbler, 3 Mealy Redpoll, 2 Hawfinch and 8 Lapland Buntings.

A Hawfinch was a lucky catch in the Obs garden this morning, dropping into trees next to me when I was on a net round, it was quickly persuaded into the mistnet - what a beast!

Although most folk were excited at seeing Hawfinch in the hand, Grace was a bit worried after I warned her to keep clear of the birds beak in case it bit her (she was possibly also a bit peeved by having her breakfast interrupted!). Maybe I should have warned Becki as well as it gave her a nasty nip! That beak can crush cherry stones, so it hurts when it gets your finger!

October on Fair Isle always brings some Locustella excitement, this one at Da Water turned out to be a Grasshopper Warbler.

The good times continue.

2011-10-01T01:57:00.000+01:00

There was no Birthday bird yesterday, but none of us minded waiting a day for a present – PALLAS’S GRASSHOPPER WARBLER found by Will in Gilsetter. What a find, what a bird and what a way to end the month, now what will October bring…

I didn't manage a picture of the bird, but here's the crowd waiting to get views. It showed very well for what can be a horribly skulking species, with everyone getting a good look. The amazing mouse-like scampering was seen on several occasions - they really can run!

It wasn’t just the big rare that made the day, an arrival of migrants saw Redwings scattered across the island and a nice little selection of lingering rarities and a few new scarcities were seen. I’m now getting back up to full ‘match fitness’ and had a wander out to Dronger, where I was pleased to turn up two Yellow-browed Warblers sharing a small geo with Spotted Flycatcher, two Dunnocks, Goldcrest and a handful of Redwings and Song Thrush. It was a great day to be out, with that real buzz of excitement that new birds coming in brings (especially when the weather is pleasant and sunny, so you get a chance to really appreciate the birds).

Redwings arrived in good numbers, always a good sign when searching for rarities.

The highlights from the Log show what a good day it has been with: Citrine Wagtail (the lingering bird at Barkland), Richard’s Pipit (found in the afternoon at Field), 3 Little Buntings (one at Skadan still with new birds at Hjukni and the Obs), 10 Yellow-browed Warblers, Hawfinch (briefly at Chalet), the lingering Melodious Warbler and Rose-coloured Starling, 496 Redwing, Fieldfare, 39 Song Thrush, 3 Ring Ouzel, 2 Redstart, 10 Whinchat, 22 Blackcap, 2 Spotted Flycatcher, Yellow Wagtail, Short-eared Owl, 2 Jack Snipe, 16 Chaffinch, 28 Brambling, 12 Mealy Redpoll, 4 Crossbill and 31 Lapland Bunting. ‘Most underappreciated bird of the day’ had to be the Little Bunting found by Marilyn at the Obs and then trapped by Jason. Normally this would have resulted in a full ringing room, but the call from Will announcing his find saw everyone dashing straight out instead!

Earlier, Carrie and myself had taken the children of Fair Isle Primary and the visiting pupils from the Skerries on a trap round and showed them some of the work of the Obs. They’re such an enthusiastic and well behaved bunch of kids that it’s always a pleasure to work with them and today was no exception – they all seemed to enjoy it too!

All of the fun of today followed on from a fantastic ‘Fair Isle Thursday’ in the Obs last night, with a good atmosphere as staff, islanders and visitors enjoyed live music by island musicians and a superb show of short videos by Liz from Haa. I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again, Fair Isle really is a great place to live (and not just because of the wonderful cake and rendition of 'happy birthday' I got)!

A good night - live music and a pint (in my birthday present pint glass that survived being posted to Fair Isle!).

Grace enjoys birthdays whether they're hers or not. She helped me to open my cards and presents (and tried on my new t-shirt!), quickly got stuck into the cake and had a dance to the music of Fridarey.

Birthday Birds!

2011-09-29T09:53:00.000+01:00

Nothing spectacular to report yet, but a Redwing and 4 Blackcaps on morning traps hints that maybe a few things are on the move, as did the skeins of Pink-feet overhead.
There are three birthdays at the Obs today (two guests and me!) and a quick check of the birth dates for Ian, Craig and myself shows that some good birds turned up whilst we were making our first appearances: 1971 Pechora Pipit; 1976 Pallas's Reed Bunting (1st for Britain); 1981 Red-flanked Bluetail (1st for Fair Isle). Any one of those today would make for a very happy birthday indeed!

Birthday Bird! After having surprised Tommy at Auld Haa by turning up in his garden on his birthday last week (and just for a second convincing him he'd found a major Shetland rarity!), this Magpie put in an appearance at Lower Stoneybrek for Neil's big day and showed up at the Obs this morning!

A spectacular display of Aurora on Tuesday night was visble from the bar and saw the sky dancing until at least 3am in one of the best shows on the island for years. Sadly it was beyond the capabilities of my camera to capture it and this is the best shot I got!

Latest Sightings.

2011-09-28T21:24:00.000+01:00

The latest sightings as summarised by Jason:

This Snow Bunting is one of the small group hanging around North Light.

25th September 2011
Highlight today was the arrival of a juvenile Rose-coloured Starling, dropping in at around 1pm from high above the Obs. The bird visited the feeder briefly and then bombed off with other Starlings, roaming the island widely from then on. The Citrine Wagtail remains at Barkland, as does the Melodious Warbler at Shirva.
Twelve Greylag Geese flew south and the first Long-tailed Duck of the autumn was seen in South Harbour. The Quail at Taft was seen again, while 3 Red-throated Divers flew south. Two Grey Herons were present, while raptors included a female Sparrowhawk, 4 Kestrels, 1 Merlin and a Peregrine. The first Water Rail of the autumn dropped onto Buness, while waders included a 15 Golden Plovers, the lingering Curlew Sandpiper still on Meoness, 8 Purple Sandpipers, 4 Dunlins and 4 Jack Snipe. Twelve Kittiwakes were recorded passing the island.
The lingering Short-eared Owl remains in the Pund area, while 8 Swallows were logged across the island. A small but noticeable arrival occurred in fairly blustery, though short range south-easterlies, with new birds and good counts including 8 Whinchats, 37 Wheatears, 4 Redwings, 1 Grasshopper Warbler, 2 Barred Warblers, at the Reevas and Setter, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 1 Garden Warbler, 4 lingering Yellow-browed Warblers, 10 Willow Warblers, the lingering Great Grey Shrike, 2 Bramblings, 6 Siskins, 1 Linnet, 2 Common Rosefinches still and 34 Lapland Buntings.

The Rose-coloured Starling has abandoned the Starling flock and is by itself up at North Light.

26th September 2011
The Melodious Warbler, Citrine Wagtail and Rose-coloured Starling all remained.
The lingering Quail remains, while Grey Heron numbers increased to 4. Raptors included 5 Kestrels, 2 Merlins and the lingering Peregrine, while a Water Rail was seen on Da Water. Our first Stock Dove of the year was seen flying south over the Kirk, while the Short-eared Owl is still present at Pund. A Short-toed Lark, discovered in the same location as out previous lingering bird, at the Sheep Cru near the Plantation, may have been new bird, with 5 days since its last sighting. Six Swallows were present on the island.
Passerine counts included a Tree Pipit, 243 Meadow Pipits, the lingering Dunnock, 1 Redstart, 8 Whinchats, 31 Wheatears, 2 Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrushes, 4 Redwings, 1 Grasshopper Warbler, 1 Sedge Warbler, 1 lingering Barred Warbler, 2 Common Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers, 15 Blackcaps, 3 Yellow-browed Warblers still, 3 Chiffchaffs, 4 Willow Warblers, 1 Goldcrest, an influx of 5 Spotted Flycatchers, the lingering Great Grey Shrike, 9 Siskins, 9 Lesser Redpolls (a notable influx), 3 Mealy Redpolls, 37 Lapland Buntings, 4 Snow Buntings and what is presumably the Little Bunting back for more after an absence of a couple of days, at Utra and the Haa.

The Great Grey Shrike is still roaming the south of the island, where even the sheep think its worth a look.

27th September 2011
The Rose-coloured Starling, Citrine Wagtail and Melodious Warbler remain.
A few skeins of Pink-footed Geese, adding up to 95 birds, passed south over the island, as did 16 Greylag Geese. Eight Wigeon and 5 Teal were present, as was a Red-breasted Merganser in the Havens. Kestrel numbers increased to 7, joining the resident Merlins and Peregrine.
The Short-eared Owl remains, while small migrant numbers included 305 Meadow Pipits, 2 Dunnocks, 1 Robin, 3 Redstarts, 9 Whinchats, 2 Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrushes, 4 Redwings, a Reed Warbler, 2 Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers, 16 Blackcaps, 4 Yellow-browed Warblers, 4 Chiffchaffs, 4 Willow Warblers, 5 Goldcrests, the Great Grey Shrike still, 9 Siskins, 3 Linnets, 6 Lesser Redpolls, 2 Mealy Redpolls, 32 Lapland Buntings and 11 Snow Buntings.

Pink-feet are on the move, this skein decided to have a brief rest on Malcolm's Head.

Saturday Sightings

2011-09-25T00:24:00.000+01:00

Although no more American birds were found (it was always a long shot!) there were a few signs of migrants on the move, with Long-eared Owl being the pick of the bunch along with a slight increase in Goldcrests and Blackcaps. Lingering rarities included a Citrine Wagtail at Barkland, Great Grey Shrike at Schoollton (which added Tree Pipit to its 'list of migrants that I have eaten') and the Melodious Warbler at Shirva, whilst at least four Yellow-browed Warblers included our third to be ringed this autumn.

The Baird's Sandpiper took a liking to the wader scrape, but also gave very good views on the road!

Gerylag Geese heading to Orkney when the wind was a bit stronger a couple of days ago.

There's a real buzz about the Obs at the minute, with plenty of birders here and the feeling that any rarities will have to try quite hard to escape detection. Hopefully we will get some winds from the east soon (two hours of forecasted SSE tomorrow probably won't be quite enough!), although in the meantime further American visitors would be most welcome.

Away from the birding side of things, it has been very nice to have my parents here for the last week, although they have headed back home today. Despite not being birders, they’ve added a few more species to their lists (although they weren’t that impressed by the Blyth’s Reed Warbler it has to be said), but more importantly Grace, Susannah and I have got to enjoy their company for a few days. Grace particularly enjoys ‘winding Gramps up’ and has come up with some memorable phrases in the last few days including, ‘I’m Grace Parnaby and I'm not sharing my chocolate’, you can’t argue with that!

In response to Grandpa's request to 'take that thumb out of your mouth', Grace's replaces it with all of her fingers!

Baird and Breakfast!

2011-09-24T10:26:00.000+01:00

What a way to start the day – a call of ‘Baird’s Sand at North Haven’ caused a panic around the breakfast table with staff (including some from the kitchen) and visitors abandoning bacon, eggs and black pudding to hurry down to see this smart little visitor from ‘across the pond’. Good views were had by all as the bird fed on the grass amongst a small group of Turnstone and Sanderling.

Preferring to feed on the grass than the beach, the Baird's was seen to eat a couple of large worms - hungry after a long sea crossing perhaps?

Only about the 14th record for Shetland and the fourth for Fair Isle, it is the first to grace our shores since 1996. Despite the blustery south-westerly winds, it has set the wardens off on census with a bit of an extra spring in their steps, will there be anything else from the west out there?

Little cracker! A very good bird found by one of our visitors, can the wardens beat that today?!

Recent Sightings

2011-09-23T14:30:00.000+01:00

Until we get the website updated again, I'll put latest sightings (as collated by Jason) on the blog. All the photos below (except the Lesser Redpoll) are by Jason as well.
I'll post a further update later today with news of the Common Rosefinch, as the ringer who first caught the bird has been in touch!

20th September 2011

What is probably the same GREAT SNIPE from the 18th was re-found at Shirva, while a further highlight included the sighting of Fair Isle's 5th SABINES GULL. The bird, an adult leaving its summer plumage, flew past South Light in the morning. The Citrine Wagtail remains, as does the Melodious Warbler.
One Red-throated Diver was recorded, while notable waders included 11 Ringed Plovers, 6 Golden Plovers, 1 Knot, 2 Purple Sandpipers, 1 Ruff and 1 Jack Snipe. Seven Kittiwakes flew past Buness, along with 3 Guillemots and a Razorbill.
Three Short-eared Owls were present at Pund, while the Short-toed Lark remains. Other small migrants logged on census included a Tree Pipit, 2 Dunnocks, a Robin, 1 Redstart, 6 Whinchats, 16 Wheatears, 1 Blackbird, 1 Fieldfare, 8 Song Thrushes, 2 Redwings, 1 Sedge Warbler, 1 Reed Warbler, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 2 Whitethroats, 1 Garden Warbler, 12 Blackcaps, 5 Yellow–browed Warblers, 13 Willow Warblers, 4 Goldcrests, 3 Spotted Flycatchers, the Great Grey Shrike, a Brambling, 5 Linnets, 5 Common Rosefinches, 30 Lapland Buntings, 24 Snow Buntings and the Little Bunting that arrived on the 18th.

Little Bunting taking advantage of an Obs crop strip. These planted areas are scattered around the island and offer cover and food for lots of birds, inlcuding several large flocks of Twite.

Jason and the Great Grey Shrike. Caught in the Obs mistnet on Monday, my fingers still have the scars from its rather ungrateful behaviour as I extracted it!

Yellow-browed Warbler (also using an Obs crop strip). Up to eight of this fantastic beasties have been seen and two have been ringed. There utter dinkyness in the hand makes their long-distance journey seem all the more amazing.

21st September 2011

A rough day, with strong winds and heavy rain making census difficult, and numbers recorded were undoubtedly low due to this. However seawatching was the best it’s been all year, and a SABINES GULL was seen traveling north off Buness in the morning (possibly yesterday's bird?).
Nine Wigeon and 3 Teal were logged, while seawatching was, by Fair Isle standards, fairly productive, with 5 Sooty Shearwaters and 3 Manx Shearwaters passing both Buness and South Light. Nineteen Kittiwakes, 39 Guillemots, 34 Razorbills and a Puffin were also recorded, all passing east. Wader included a smart juvenile Curlew Sandpiper on Meoness, 4 Knot, 7 Purple Sandpipers and 18 Redshanks. Two Short-eared Owls were also still present.
A Sand Martin was recorded along with 6 Swallows, while small migrants included the same Tree Pipit, 2 Dunnocks, 5 Whinchats, 4 Fieldfares, 2 Song Thrushes, 4 Redwings, 1 Garden Warbler, 3 Blackcaps, 3 Yellow-browed Warblers, 1 Chiffchaff, 6 Willow Warblers, the lingering Great Grey Shrike, 2 Lesser Redpolls in the Plantation (the first of the year of this scarce bird in Shetland), 31 Lapland Buntings and 10 Snow Buntings.

Both of the Redpolls were trapped and the measurements confirmed the initial suspicions, based on the warm brown plumage, that they were Lesser (although this one is trying to make itself look bigger by fluffing itself up).

Our only Bluethroat so far of the autumn was trapped on Monday and put on a good show later in the day.

22nd September 2011

Highlights: What was probably the same Great Snipe was flushed from Boini Mire. The Citrine Wagtail was seen again at Barkland and the Melodious Warbler remained at Shirva. The Little Bunting put in a brief appearance at Utra in the evening and the Great Grey Shrike roamed the island and was seen to kill a Blackcap at Haa.
More expected scarce migrants included 3 Yellow-browed Warbler, 2 Common Rosefinch, 22 Lapland and 28 Snow Buntings and the two Lesser Redpolls had moved to the crop strip at Bull’s Park.

Other migrants were present in generally smaller numbers, although there were several flocks of Pink-footed and Greylag Geese on the move. Counts of other species included: 1 Sooty Shearwater , 27 Golden Plover, 4 Kestrel, a Grey Plover (the first of the autumn), 1 Knot, 2 Sanderling, a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper at Meoness, 1 Ruff, 1 Jack Snipe, 52 Skylark, 2 Short-eared Owls, 2 Tree Pipits, 152 Meadow Pipit, 6 Whinchat, 35 Wheatear, 4 Song Thrush, 2 Redwing, Whitethroat, 9 Blackcap, Chiffchaff, 5 Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, 2 Spotted Flycatcher and a Linnet.

Is this your Rosefinch?

2011-09-21T09:20:00.000+01:00

Another good day of birds on the island, although most were lingering from previous days. The main new highlight was a Sabine's Gull seen by Rob from South Light, a scarce bird on Fair Isle where it is fair to say that seawatching is not our strong point.
As I catch up with work from the last couple of weeks, one puzzle that still remains is a colour-ringed juvenile Common Rosefinch that was part of the impressive 15 that were around the island in early September.

Left leg orange over green, right leg metal. But did you ring this Rosefinch? Please get in touch.

The only problem is that we haven't yet been able to trace who ringed this bird. The usual channels have not yet produced any results, but perhaps someone out there could help? Common Rosefinches are a regular autumn migrant on Fair Isle (often in small flocks) and whilst the majority are immatures, some adults also occur. It would be fascinating to find out a bit more about the origins and movements of these birds, so hopefully someone will be able to help with this sighting.

The Rares keep coming.

2011-09-19T21:09:00.000+01:00

Fair Isle at its best – a shout from Will this morning, ‘Blyth’s Reed Warbler in the garden’ was enough to cause a scramble. With the nets open a bit of gentle coaxing didn’t work, but thankfully, shortly afterwards the bird then made its own way into a mistnet. It was extracted and processed, where the measurements confirmed the identification, and paraded for all at the Obs to enjoy. A great call from Will with this potentially tricky species (they were strictly an ‘in hand identification’ only when I was a lad!), especially as the first bird of the day to see out the bedroom window!

After release the Blyth's Reed showed well in the garden at times, even feeding out on the grass.

Whilst the BRW was being shown off to our visitors, a second check of the nets produced a Great Grey Shrike, which took lumps out my hand but was well worth it. The Shrike was later recaught in the Vaadal, where it dropped its mouse prey in the catching box. After refusing to pick the mouse up, Jason had the bright idea to put the mouse on the ground, then put the GGS next to it – it swiftly grabbed its grub and flew off over the hill!

Jason also caught a Bluethroat in the Gully and a Yellow-browed Warbler (one of at least five on the island) was trapped later in Single Dyke. Other birds seen today included Little Bunting (Walli Burn), Citrine Wagtail (Da Water), Melodious Warbler (Shirva), Barred Warbler, Short-toed Lark and 3 Common Rosefinch, with a variety of common migrants probably slightly reduced in number from yesterday but including the first Ring Ouzel of the autumn.
I’m ‘taking it easy’ and plodding round the roads a little bit, so I haven’t caught up with all the birds, but I can feel my fitness coming back, so I’m sure I’ll be OK to run up Ward Hill tomorrow if needs be! For those of you interested in such things, I got my stitches out today (anyone want to see a picture?!) but I am currently held together with medical sellotape.
The forecast now looks less promising for a few days, with westerly winds set to dominate. But this is Fair Isle and virtually anything is possible, so I’d not be surprised if there were still one or two headline birds to come…

18th September

2011-09-19T20:54:00.000+01:00

Just to give you a flavour of a day on Fair Isle, these were some of the highlights from yesterday’s log:

Great Snipe, Citrine Wagtail, Melodious Warbler, 4 Yellow-browed Warbler, Great Grey Shrike, Wryneck, Little Bunting, Short-toed Lark, 4 Common Rosefinch, Curlew Sandpiper, 4 Jack Snipe, 3 Short-eared Owl, 2 Tree Pipit, 12 Whinchat, 4 Fieldfare, 3 Redwing, 4 Grasshopper Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler, 5 Lesser Whitethroat, 20 Garden Warbler, 40 Blackcap, 21 Willow Warbler, 3 Spotted Flycatcher, Brambling and 41 Lapland Bunting.
The best birding in the country? Well, it’s certainly up there, and its some of the best and most enjoyable birding I’ve experienced – and I’ve been around a bit!

Aside from the rarities, scarcities and numbers of passage migrants, there are usually a few other species around the island that are of interest, such as these Snow Buntings on Ward Hill. Others in recent days have included up to 36 Whooper Swans, a few Pink-footed Geese and a few passage waders.

I'm Back!

2011-09-17T19:37:00.001+01:00

With no updates for a fortnight, this could be a massive blog post if I’m not careful, so I’ll try and stick to the main points.

You’ll find all the bird news from recent days at: www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk/latest.htm , with the outstanding highlight being the second Pallid Harrier of the autumn, although another Melodious Warbler was also a good find. I suspect there may be more to come as the wind is in the east as I write this, the rain is coming through in showers and already today there has been Great Grey Shrike (found in the Obs garden), Wryneck (trapped in the plantation) and a scattering of common migrants including a Short-eared Owl seen in coming in off the sea this morning (along with lingering Citrine Wagtail, Melodious Warbler and Barred Warbler).
So why am I at my computer instead of in the field, and why have there been no updates for so long? Answer: a perforated appendix saw me whisked off the island on Saturday (thanks Oscar Charlie, especially for the fly past as I left that was so low it shook the Obs I'm told!) into Gilbert Bain Hospital in Lerwick where I’ve been recovering from the operation to have it removed for the last few days. Thankfully I’m back on the island now, although still having to ‘take it easy’ for a few weeks. That could be tested if a decent bird appears on Dronger, but I’m being good for now…
I owe loads of people thanks including: Elena (the Fair Isle nurse); the doctors, nurses and rest of the team at GBH; the staff here at FIBO who have covered my absence with gusto; Deryk and Hollie for the extra work they have put in to keep FIBO heated, clean etc; the folk who came to visit me and left me with enough jelly babies to seriously test my baggage allowance for the return flight and to all the guests and readers of the blog who have been asking Susannah for updates on my progress. Of course, I owe loads of thanks to Susannah and Grace, but I've been able to tell them that in person. So, in summary, I’m fine now and hoping to get back to ‘match fitness’ soon!
One last point, I was ruminating in my hospital bed as I stared out to sea (nice views from the GBH!) about how it would be nice to get home, which made me realise how settled I am on Fair Isle now that I think of the island as 'home' after a relatively short space of time, so thanks to all the islanders as well who have helped my family and I settle in.
More bird news and the excitement of the autumn to follow soon I hope!

Grace made some cakes for my return and very nice they were too (although it's always a surprise there's anything left to go in the oven with various spillages and 'taste tests' taking their toll).

Old news, but this is the Citrine Wagtail trapped earlier in the month. It still seems to be around as a ringed bird was photographed at Furse yesterday, but there is also an unringed bird that has been seen at Barkland today. An unringed bird photographed at Easter Lother a couple of days ago was presumably the Barkland bird, although three individuals is a possibility... However many are involved, they are making many of our guests as happy as Jason is here.

These two Barred Warblers trapped on the same morning round in the plantation earlier in the month were the 8th and 9th to be ringed at the Obs this year, the 10th was trapped at Barkland later the same day.

14th September 2011

West/north-easterly 2-3. Cold and showery, but drying up by the afternoon.
The PALLID HARRIER remains and continues to patrol spectacularly across the island. The Melodious Warbler is also still present, sticking to its favoured area around Midway and Shirva.
Three Greylags were present, along with just 5 Wigeon and 1 Teal. Raptors included 1 female Sparrowhawk, 5 Kestrels, one female Merlin and a Peregrine.
Our first Long-eared Owl of the autumn came in off at South Light, while smaller migrants included a lingering Sand Martin, 19 Swallows south, 5 Whinchats, 20 Wheatears, 2 Sedge Warblers, 2 Barred Warblers, 1 Lesser and Common Whitethroat, 6 Garden Warblers, 13 Blackcaps, 3 Chiffchaffs, 7 Willow Warblers, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, 3 Common Rosefinches, 10 Lapland Buntings and 18 Snow Buntings.

15th September 2011

Dry and bright, with light winds
The day’s main highlight was the discovery of a Citrine Wagtail at Easter Lother Water in the morning. The bird soon moved to the beaches at the bottom of Furse, where it became elusive. The Melodious Warbler remains.
Our first Pink-footed Goose of the autumn arrived, along with 8 Greylags and 7 Teal. An immature Slavonian Grebe was found in North Haven, where it remained for the day, and was our first of the year.
A Short-eared Owl was present in the south, while small migrants included 382 Meadow Pipits, 3 Whinchats, 2 Barred Warblers, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers, 8 Blackcaps, 6 Willow Warblers, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, 2 Common Rosefinches, 27 Lapland Buntings and 18 Snow Buntings.

16th September 2011

South-easterly winds, relatively light. Overcast.
One Citrine Wagtail became two today, with the bird at Furse competing for attention with another bird around the Gilly Burn. The Melodious Warbler remains for its 5th day.
A rather spectacular highlight of the day was the arrival of a herd of 35 Whooper Swans in from the south in the morning, low over a good proportion of the Obs residents’ heads. Six Pink-footed Geese, 9 Greylags, 13 Wigeon and 15 Teal also arrived. Wader Counts included 36 Ringed Plover, 14 Golden Plovers, 1 Knot, 7 Sanderlings, 6 Dunlins, 1 lingering Bar-tailed Godwit and 12 Redshanks. One Kittiwake was seen offshore.
Small migrant numbers included singles of Robin and Whinchat, 2 Barred Warblers, Lesser Whitethroat, Common Whitethroat, Garden Warbler, 8 Blackcaps, 5 Chiffchaffs, 6 Willow Warblers, 2 Goldcrests, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, 4 Common Rosefinches, 45 Lapland Buntings and 6 Snow Buntings.

Spaces available this autumn

2011-09-04T21:28:00.000+01:00

OK, so you’ve always wanted to visit Fair Isle? Now’s your chance –give us a ring today to book yourself a few nights here this autumn with the chance to see (and find) some stunning rarities! Check our website for details on transport links to the island and give us a ring to discuss a break at the new Fair Isle Bird Observatory.

Date still available:

Shared Room (sleeps up to four) available for the nights of 17th – 23rd September inclusive.

Twin/double Room available for four nights from 13th – 16th September.

Twin/double Room available for five nights from 12th – 16th September.

Twin/double Room 8th – 10th October (3 nights).

Twin/double Room 14th – 16th October (3 nights).

And there are still spaces from 18th October (the time of some very good birds in the past).

All rooms are en-suite and all prices are full board (per person per night): Single £55, Double/Twin £50, Single Occupancy of Double/Twin £70.

An Island Update.

2011-09-03T23:17:00.000+01:00

OK, bird stuff first: the Eastern Olivaceous Warbler and Great Snipe remained this morning and the Common Rosefinches had increased to 15 (including a group of 12), comfortably the largest autumn flock recorded on Fair Isle (and possibly the UK) as far as I know. Jason had flight only views of a calling Pectoral Sandpiper on Meoness. Pec Sand is one of my favourite birds, so hopefully it’ll turn up tomorrow.

No picture of the Pectoral Sandpiper I'm afraid, but this Curlew Sand at the North Light a few days ago showed how confiding juvenile waders can be - hopefully the Pec will turn out to be the same the tomorrow...

Will had four Killer Whales distantly from North Light on Thursday, the best cetaceans I've managed recently was a group of Porpoise off Buness.

A final bit of bird news on what was generally a quiet day (for new birds at least) is that Jason managed to catch ‘Dennis’ the Whooper Swan on Meoness whilst looking for the Pec Sand this evening, so he is now sporting a fine new leg ring after a quick trip to the Obs.

How to weigh a Whooper Swan. Sadly, I didn't manage to hide our somewhat 'stained' bathroom scales before Susannah found out what I'd been using them for!

Have you seen this man? The public are advised not to approach him as he smells a bit of swan poo.

A couple of bits of news from the island. The hand-knitted Fisherman’s kep that was being auctioned to raise funds for the Fair Isle museum extension sold for £300, fantastic stuff. I’ll try to remember to let you know when the next one comes up for auction as I think there are still a couple left. Another traditional Fair Isle activity has seen many of the lambs from the crofts head off to the sales this week. It was a long day for the Good Shepherd crew who ended up doing back-to-back runs to Grutness to get them all away, but thankfully the sea was fairly calm on Thursday.

Bye bye baa baa

The weather has been showery recently. Although you can often see the rain coming, there's not much you can do about it when you're on the cliffs at Hoini.

And finally, some Obs news. With a more than reasonable roll call of rarities so far this autumn (Eastern Olivaceous, Booted, Arctic, Melodious and Greenish Warblers, Pallid Harrier, Great Snipe, Citrine Wagtail, Short-toed Lark and many, many scarcities), you could be forgiven for thinking that we’ve used up our luck. However, I suspect there may be more good birds to come and there are still a few spaces here and there for the autumn if you are wanting to come and stay with us. I’ll post fuller details of the dates tomorrow, but in the meantime why not visit our webpage for details of past autumn sightings to whet your appetite.

A quick Grace update - thanks to all of you who have been asking about her, especially guests who have written since you left the Obs. She is loving life on the island, with the playground being more popular than the beach now. This is her 'being a spider monkey' apparently! The fresh air seems to be helping her grow as well, with lots of people commenting on how tall she's getting. She's taking quite an interest in the wildlife and even managed to see the Booted Warbler at Burkle before I did (although her description that it was 'not like a Whinchat, it was like a Barn Owl' probably won't go to the BBRC). She was very pleased to see Dennis in the Obs this evening!

Olly Olly Olly...

2011-09-02T21:41:00.000+01:00

I was going to write a bit about general island life this evening, as census seemed quite quiet and the SSW wind didn't seem to be likely to bring us many birds. This was perhaps a bit disrespectful to the Great Snipe, 7+ Common Rosefinch, 2 Barred Warblers and 2 Red-backed Shrikes that were around the island, but I thought folk may want to hear a bit about something else for a change!

A typical Fair Isle scene, three Rosefinches and a Whinchat line up on a fence.

Anyway, all that changed when a Hippolais warbler first glimpsed at Taft was confirmed as an Eastern Olivaceous Warbler. Despite being elusive at times, it eventually showed well to all at Schoolton showing off its key ID features, including the regular dipping of the tail that helps to separate it from several closely related species.

With a bit of imagination you can even see the tail pumping in this picture!

Whilst watching the Warbler, other birds to enjoy in the garden included seven Common Rosefinch, Barred Warbler, Red-backed Shrike and a Robin!

A nice bird and a continuation of what has been a pretty impressive autumn (and indeed year) so far.

Goodness Greatcious Me!

2011-08-29T22:34:00.000+01:00

North-westerly gales continued to batter the island, making census difficult at times, although the day was largely dry after some torrential rain last night. Also last night was a mighty crash at about 1am that woke up most of the Obs, but the source of which has not yet been traced!

The route through Gully trap took on an exciting element today, with white water rapids to cross.

A small number of migrants linger, with Barred Warbler at the Obs and Common Rosefinch at Schoolton the pick of the bunch but waders stole the show today. Common species generally increased in numbers and three Bar-tailed Godwits flew north. The highlight though was a rather unexpected Great Snipe flushed from a crop strip at Kennaby. I managed to see it just twice in flight (although the second time was a rather nice fly past as it circled back past me) and sadly it couldn’t be relocated later by the massed ranks of Obs staff, researchers and guests.

Sadly I didn't have my camera with me for the Great Snipe, so a picture of the unsuccesful twitch is the best I can manage.

Presumably this bird arrived during the fall a few days ago and has been lurking undetected (both times it was flushed from about 3 metres ahead of me, so it would have been easy to walk past it without realising). Our second Great Snipe of the year following one in the spring, hopefully it will be relocated tomorrow and allow a few more people the chance to see it.

One of two Fulmars I helped out today. This one had got stuck behind the fence in the Gully plantation, the other was sat on the road outside Lower Stonybreck. Both of them were sick on me.

Summer Storms.

2011-08-28T22:25:00.001+01:00

After the excitement of Friday's birds, the weekend has been rather quiet, with gale force winds from the North-west and some very heavy rain. A Sooty Shearwater was seen from South Light today and Barred Warbler, Red-backed Shrike and Wryneck all put in an appearance, whilst the Short-toed Lark was on the airstrip again yesterday, but generally things were keeping their heads down. The Little Stint and Curlew Sandpiper were both still around yesterday and there seem to be reasonable numbers of waders present, with little groups of Ringed Plover, Knot, Sanderling and Ruff scattered across the island.

With Gannet chicks just starting to fledge, the storm has hit at a bad time. Most of the colonies are on the NW of the island, right in the teeth of the gale.

With the weather hampering attempts at getting much done, it was the perfect time for the 'Games Night' on Saturday that saw a good turn out from the islanders. A keen competition ensued between the two teams (the 'Fairies' and 'Dinosaurs', nothing personal in the names, they were just the only sticker books we had), with the activities continuing well into the night and everyone enjoying themselves. We had a few islanders visit for tea and cakes on the terrace today, although given the weather, we had to make do with ‘tea and cakes with a view of the terrace’ from the lounge.
So, after the rush of birds last week, a quiet weekend has helped recharge the batteries ready for whatever next week will bring. The forecast doesn’t look that promising for bringing in many birds, but this is Fair Isle, where I’m quickly learning that anything is possible.

Whatever the weather, Fair Isle is a beautiful place. This is the view from Malcolm's Head, which is best appreciated when the wind is not blowing you off your feet and the island isn't shrouded in low cloud.

A tale of two Hippos.

2011-08-27T01:18:00.002+01:00

A lovely day, with the wind mostly still in the east, saw a slight decrease in numbers of some of the common migrants, a few species (including Spotted Flycatcher) increased in numbers and the first Goldcrest of the autumn was seen. Scarcities were still well represented, with two Wrynecks, seven Barred Warblers, a Red-backed Shrike, Dotterel and nine Common Rosefinches. The latter may well be an underestimate as sightings from elsewhere on the island are taken as being birds dispersing from the flock of nine at Schoolton, but more individuals may be involved.

Migrants are scattered across the whole island, with birds like this Pied Flycatcher as likely to be on a beach or cliff as in a garden.

Today saw the current fall topped with a classic rarity, with Will turning up a great Booted Warbler near Burkle.

Will admiring his find (notice that it is 'birding in a t-shirt' weather).

The Booted Warbler was flighty at first and I only got distant views, although it posed down to five metres later on for folk.

Having seen the Booted Warbler fly off towards Haa we headed down there to try to refind it and found a Melodious Warbler instead! The magic of Fair Isle encapsulated in a couple of hundred yards.

Melodious Warbler at the Haa, the first on Fair Isle since 2006 and the 16th for Fair Isle.

The forecast is now for some days of strong NW winds, which may put an end to migration for a while, although perhaps Lapland Buntings may put in an appearance.
That’s all for today, just a brief summary as we’ve just come back from an aborted Storm Petrel ringing session. The wind picked up just too much to make catching any Stormies a possibility, but a Sanderling caught on the beach was a great bonus!

Fulmars are fledging, although this one only made it as far as the beach at Hjukni just below its nest before it needed a rest!

Epic birding!

2011-08-25T23:52:00.003+01:00

Ok, time for a blog post, apologies for not keeping you up to date but it’s been busy!
Yesterday saw a day of easterly wind and lashing rain, perfect conditions to bring migrants in – and boy did it! We held off census until the rain stopped in the afternoon, so the first real indication of what had happened was Jason running the traps on his way back from ‘town’ and producing a Corncrake, Wryneck and Pied Flycatcher and a couple of common migrants. After processing them (and the Barred Warbler that was caught as the Corncrake was being released) we headed out. Lunch was abandoned (sorry Roy and the kitchen team!) as the lure of birds proved too strong for the wardening team and the excitement overtook us.

The Corncrake on its release. It flew a short way then ran off into the heather.

The bare statistics won’t do justice to just what an amazing day’s birding it was, but the haul included: Arctic Warbler (the bird from the previous day still present), Corncrake, 19 Wryneck, 8 Barred Warbler, 7 Common Rosefinch, 71 Tree Pipit, 60 Willow Warbler, 14 Garden Warbler, 3 Wood Warbler, 8 Pied Flycatcher, 4 Redstart, 3 Grasshopper Warbler, 9 Whinchat, 2 Spotted Flycatcher, 2 Flava Wagtails, 3 Blackcap, 5 Chiffchaff, Reed Warbler, Robin and 25 Ruff. The feeling that having birds fly up from just about every patch of cover gives is what makes most of us enjoy birding so much, and this is a day that will stick in the memory of everyone lucky enough to be here for it.

Wrynecks seemed to be everywhere yesterday, with at least 19 found, which is probably the second highest autumn count for Fair Isle. This one was caught in the Gully this morning.

Today dawned with easterly winds and sunshine and the promise of more birds. After a slightly stalled start to census (due to a minor hiccup with our power supply), it became clear that there were still plenty of birds around and indeed counts for many species had increased. Although Wrynecks had decreased from their peak yesterday to five today (including two that were caught and ringed), many other species had increased, with totals of (and I apologise for the list again): a juvenile Red-backed Shrike, 7 Common Rosefinch, 6 Barred Warbler, 104 Tree Pipit, 93 Willow Warbler, 20 Whinchat, 15 Redstart, 10 Pied Flycatcher, 15 Garden Warbler, 4 Spotted Flycatcher, 7 Blackcap, 3 Whitethroat and 3 Flava Wagtails. On top of that, some wader movement saw three new species appear for the year in the form of Dotterel (a juvenile on Ward Hill), Curlew Sandpiper and Little Stint.

Tree Pipits increased to an very impressive 104, a good count even by Fair Isle's high standards.

Never mind that there were no BB rares, this is birding at its best. Some fantastic species, good numbers of common migrants and the real feeling that you never know what the next bird could be. Bring on tomorrow!

It's grim up North.

2011-08-23T23:22:00.001+01:00

North census is a great route, it’s got fantastic scenery, Gannet colonies, a nice mix of habitats and a good track record of birds. That said, it doesn’t have the crofts and gardens that the southern routes have and so it can be a bit quiet at times for migrants. Today was one of those days: I got back from a more-or-less migrant-less census to find that there were six Barred Warblers, four Common Rosefinch, the first Grasshopper Warbler of the autumn and a fly-over calling wagtail at South Light that will hopefully be tracked down tomorrow as it sounded like a pretty good bet for Citrine, all in the south of the island.

Although I was on bar duty, things were very quiet in the Obs this evening, so I asked Liz if she’d mind keeping an eye on things while I went down to check Da Water and a couple of other sites for the wagtail. With so many migrants in, I thought it would be rude to go past the Plantation and Vaadal traps without checking them. The Plantation looked like it was going to be empty, until a Rosefinch jumped out at the last minute. As I was dealing with trapping that, I became aware of a sharp ‘tzit’ call repeated three or four times coming from just beyond the trap. Eventually my hearing and brain connected and I was very much hoping that I would find a Phyllosc when I approached the Vaadal. Thankfully I did, it went straight in the box and I was able to phone the Obs and tell them I was coming back with an Arctic Warbler! There was also a Barred Warbler caught in the Vaadal - if you're only going to trap three birds, it might as well be those three!

Sweet. Fair Isle is the place in the UK to see this vagrant, with over 70 records!

The winds are still in the east this evening, so I know it is greedy to ask for anything else, but I can’t help but feel there might be one or two more birds to come…

Mainly east or southeast 5 or 6, occasionally 7, decreasing 4 at times.

2011-08-23T12:03:00.000+01:00

The Rosefinch count was up to six on Sunday evening as they came into roost and we managed to catch three of them yesterday, all juveniles, whilst the red male was seen again but avoided the traps. Two Barred Warblers and two Black Redstarts were the other highlights from yesterday's census.

A 'new' Barred Warbler appeared in the Obs garden (the previous two here were both ringed)

One of the Barred Warblers was trapped this morning in the Obs mistnets, the third to be caught this autumn. It was also a good night for Storm Petrels, with 114 trapped.

Barred Warbler in the hand.

Today has started as another beautiful sunny day, but the wind is freshening from the east and the forecast looks promising for more birds. All the scarcities so far this week have arrived on predominantly westerly winds, so with the shipping forecast promising great things, the excitement amongst the wardening team is palpable and you can expect more updates here fairly soon...

'Dennis' our semi-resident Whooper Swan seems to be thinking about migrating. He's spent the last couple of weeks on the same small headland on one of the most southerly points of Meoness staring out to sea.

Although the breeding season has come to an end for many species, we did ring two young Snipe chicks yesterday, whilst this Blackbird at Houll is a reminder of their first breeding on the island since 1973!

Rosefinches are Red.

2011-08-22T02:16:00.000+01:00

Despite the unpromising looking conditions for migrants today, there was a multiple arrival of Common Rosefinches, with four seen. One at Barkland was a smart red male, while three 'brown' ones were at Schoolton (where the male also appeared later). Fair Isle has to be the premier place in the UK for this remarkable migrant (which should be heading to India) and it is interesting that, having already ringed an adult female, an adult male has also now appeared. This would suggest that they are not lost young birds on their first migration but are perhaps using Fair Isle as a regular stop-over site.

Despite all four Rosefinches being on my census route today, I managed not to see any of them. This male appeared briefly at Barkland inbetween my two visits there, whilst the three at Schoolton dropped in after I'd left and had departed before I returned. I'm hoping for better luck tomorrow, but in the meantime thanks to Steve Minton for the shot of the male Rosefinch above.

One arrival we're expecting tomorrow is the return of Will Miles from holiday and we're hoping for a few more birds shortly after that as the winds return to the east on Tuesday. Will generally has a happy knack of returning to the island just in time for the birds, so hopefully that's an omen that we're due something pretty good this week...

Making a Splash.

2011-08-19T23:56:00.000+01:00

An amazing day for cetaceans, with it seeming impossible at times not to see a Porpoise. OK, maybe they weren't quite that common, but the incredibly calm seas saw minimum counts today of 17 Harbour Porpoise, 30 White-sided Dolphins, 6 Risso's Dolphins and two unidentified dolphins, not bad at all!
Things were quieter on land, although a Common Rosefinch briefly at the Obs was a promising sign. Barred Warblers had built up to three on Wednesday, with just one yesterday and none seen today. A few signs of migration have been noted as the autumn creeps steadily along, with Meadow Pipits, Common Gulls and Swifts all seen heading south.

Wildfowl and wader numbers are rarely particularly large on Fair Isle, but a steady trickle have been noted this week, including up to 12 Teal on Da Water.

The rain and strong south-easterly wind outside as I write this are perhaps good signs for tomorrow, but I'll admit to being a little bit distracted by tomorrow's football fixtures. I'll not tell you which game in particular it is that is causing me great anxiety, but don't expect me to answer my phone from midday tomorrow for a couple of hours and don't expect any updates here for a few days if the result goes the wrong way!

Return of the Wag

2011-08-16T23:36:00.000+01:00

Another lovely sunny day with the added bonus of the Citrine Wagtail reappearing at Da Water and showing fairly well, albeit a bit jumpily as it commuted between here and Kirk Myre. It also called a lot, as this species is wont to do, aiding its location.

Although generally easily spooked by people, when a Merlin passed over the Citrine Wagtail crouched on the ground for about five minutes. Here it is in a more relaxed pose.

The Barred Warbler remained in the Obs garden (along with Reed, Garden and Willow Warblers and Chiffchaff) with another found in the south of the island (at Haa, then seen later at Leogh). A few other birds were new in, with two Pied Flycatcher, three Ruff, over 20 Swift, a Merlin and a Sparrowhawk all showing that there were new arrivals. With the wind now back in the east and forecast to stay there until tomorrow we'll be looking forward to more new arrivals soon hopefully.

This Sand Martin was with the growing Swift flock at North Light.

The day ended with some more excitement when a group of around five Risso's Dolphins passed the Havens, allowing a dozen or so people to dash up to North Light and get brief views of these spectacular animals. A probable White-beaked Dolphin was also seen from the Good Shepherd, although views were brief (and many of the passengers were concentrating on other things, as is sometimes the way on the crossing!) so its identity couldn't be confirmed.

Only one of the Risso's passed close to the Lighthouse, note the scars and scratches that are typical of this species.

A BB rarity, a couple of scarce birds, new migrants and dolphins and all in beautiful weather. Does it get better than this?

Barry in the Bag!

2011-08-15T20:22:00.000+01:00

Many years ago, when I worked on the rather splendid Farne Islands, a long-staying Barred Warbler that lived outside the cottage on Brownsman became known as Barry (he was often the only migrant on the islands, so we all became quite attached to him). Ever since then, the Class of Brownsman '03 have referred to these magnificent warblers as 'Barrys', you have to admit, it does fit them quite nicely! I thought I should explain this now as no doubt at some point in the future I'll refer to a 'Barry' in the blog out of force of habit, so now you'll know what I'm talking about. They are a regular autumn migrant to Fair Isle, so perhaps one could have been predicted this week, but it was still good going for Becki to pull one out of the mist net about five minutes after catching a Garden Warbler and saying 'there could still be time for a Barred this evening'!
Although there was no sign of any of the rarities today, a Common Rosefinch was also ringed. Interestingly, both of these birds were carrying quite a bit of fat (the Rosefinch especially so), suggesting that they had perhaps only come a short way on the latest leg of their migration. Perhaps the Rosefinch even knew what it was doing as it was an adult and therefore may have made this journey before. All interesting stuff, it woudl be fantastic if we were lucky enough to get a recovery from that one which would help to prove (or otherwise) our theories. Fingers crossed that she ends up in a mist net near you sometime soon.

Happy Days!

2011-08-15T17:01:00.001+01:00

The last couple of days have seen a proper mixed bag of weather, with gale force wind, fog, gale force fog (a Fair Isle speciality I’m told) and monsoon style rain giving way to sunny spells, then two gorgeous days of sunshine. The Pallid Harrier remained until yesterday (as did the Greenish Warbler and Red-backed Shrike but none of them have been seen today), with the best of the new birds being an elusive Citrine Wagtail on Saturday. Initially I thought I heard one over Haa as it flew past in the fog and thankfully Jason and Benji (our new volunteer) confirmed it when it was seen briefly near Utra, then again near the Kirk where better views were obtained. The Obs garden mistnets have caught a few Pied Wagtails and a couple of Whites coming in to roost in recent days, so if the Citrine is to turn up again, that would be a nice place for it to do so… A few common migrants have been seen as well with Spotted Flycatcher and Redstart making their autumn debuts, along with a Pied Flycatcher, a few Garden Warblers, Reed Warblers, plenty of Willow Warblers and a few common passage waders. The wind has now gone to the SW so things may get a bit quieter for a while, but with Two-barred Crossbills appearing in two places in Shetland yesterday (including one that flew south from Sumburgh Head and could be lurking somewhere around the island by now!), perhaps we could get one or two more good birds soon.

The Red-backed Shrike was the only good bird not to get a photo in the last post, so here's one to make up for it.

Saturday also saw an even happier event than the arrival of a Citrine Wagtail, with the Wedding of Naomi Riddford to Niko Casagrande. Naomi is a ‘Child of the Obs’ having been born whilst her parents Nick and Elizabeth were running FIBO, so we were delighted to be part of the happy occasion and help in any small way we could (the Obs people carrier got dressed up in blue ribbon to become the wedding car for the groom!). The wedding at the Chapel saw a good turn out from islanders, family and guests (several of whom had travelled from the USA), with the service presided over by John Best, who was keen to point out that he had also been the Minister for Naomi’s baptism. Despite the strong Obs connection, everyone was very well behaved: I didn’t divert the groom to look for the acro that flew across the road on our way to the Chapel, Nick didn’t once use his binoculars during the service and the rings weren’t put on with ringing pliers! Everyone at FIBO wishes the happy couple (and they both did look really very happy, it’s always nice to see someone hardly able to get their words out properly because they’re smiling so much!) all the best for their future life together.
Just out of interest, has anyone had a better moment than the one Nick had that consisted of: preparing to take you daughter to the Chapel for her wedding: watching a Greenish Warbler in your garden; a Pallid Harrier flies past; the sun comes out from the fog for the first time that day; and England take a catch to win the Test?

As it seems to have left us now, here's a picture of the Pallid Harrier in the evening light yesterday as it gave a series of stunning fly pasts at close range.

WHAT A DAY!

2011-08-13T00:59:00.000+01:00

So in answer to yesterday’s blog title, now we know what was next: PALLID HARRIER! The day had started well, with sunshine and an easterly breeze and, despite there being no birds at all caught on the morning trap round, we were fairly confident that something would turn up. My census revealed an increase in Willow Warblers in the North (it’s great seeing them in the geos and on cliff tops, real ‘migration in action’ stuff) and the whoosh of wings as three Ruff and a Black-tailed Godwit came in from the sea over my head to land on Easter Lother.

Incoming! Black-tailed Godwit and Ruff arriving from the North.

A nice surprise was to follow with the relocation of the Short-toed Lark at the airstrip and news filtered in from the south that the Red-backed Shrike was still present, a Redstart and Reed Warbler were new in and Willow Warblers were up to 21. A good morning.

Another brief appearance from the elusive Short-toed Lark.

Nick Riddiford was the man to follow in the afternoon when he first saw a ringtail harrier near Malcolm’s Head that disappeared before he could get to his binoculars then found a Greenish Warbler in his garden.

The second Greenish Warbler for Fair Isle (and Britain) this year.

Whilst twitching the warbler, Jason spotted the harrier in flight near the School. Being not far behind, Carrie, Liz and I were keeping an eye open for it when it flew in front of us! Although only a brief fly past, the intense orange of the underparts immediately set alarm bells ringing and it wasn’t long before the crucial features were noted to clinch the identification as a juvenile Pallid Harrier. This amazing bird then spent the rest of the afternoon roaming the island apparently looking for food and showing well to everyone who was interested.

Can you tell what it is yet? The first fly past that showed the key features.

You beauty! What more needs to be said?

Although not the ‘mega’ that it was just a few years ago, this is still a pretty special species and only the second record for Fair Isle, following the first for Britain found on the island in 1931. That bird was found by Myers Jimmy, who you can read more about at: http://fair-isle.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-legend-james-stout-100-years-of.html, hopefully the acceptance of this bird will be a more straightforward process!

Whilst watching the Greenish in the Schoolton garden, the harrier flew along the Meadow Burn directly behind it. Brilliant!

I’m now listening to the wind howling from the south-east outside and heavy rain is forecast for the night. It scarcely seems reasonable to expect more birds tomorrow, but let’s wait and see what happens…

Watching a Willow Warbler on Dronger, I realised I was being watched by this fluffy young Fulmar.

One of the nice things about August is that as well as the good migrants, several seabirds are still present. Here a young Bonxie practices chasing an Arctic Skua.

What next?

2011-08-12T09:16:00.001+01:00

The wind is in the east, the birds are coming and we’re all rather excited about census over the next few days as conditions look to be rather promising (and a Grey-necked Bunting in Norway yesterday certainly sets the bar high for what could turn up). Yesterday saw a juvy Red-backed Shrike near Chalet, a promising start, although the blustery conditions left us with the lingering impression that there was probably more hiding in the bottom of the various rosa around the island. Willow Warblers have made it up to double figures, there’s been a couple of Garden Warblers and Swifts and waders continue to trickle through.

Willow Warbler on a rock. In the background a Rock Pipit is on the grass. The only birds in the Obs willows were House Sparrows. Migration means birds have to find food and shelter wherever they can, even if it isn't their prefered habitat!

Yesterday saw a Green Sandpiper trapped, but ‘bird of the week’ (as far as far as trapping goes) must be the juvenile Kestrel caught on Tuesday that was sporting a Swedish ring. It’s obvious that any bird that makes it to Fair Isle has had a reasonable adventure to get here (even if it just comes from Shetland that’s still a crossing over 20 miles or, to put it another way, slightly more than crossing from Dover to Calais), but there’s something about catching a bird ringed in Scandinavia that really makes you think about the journeys they undertake - amazing!

A few Painted Ladies are still arriving, this one looks like it has been about a bit and survived a few Rock Pipit attacks.

PS - a couple of things I forgot to mention in this update. A juvenile Moorhen was a surprise at the Chalet on Wednesday and is probably one of the earliest autumn records of this species on Fair Isle (we're checking the records even as we speak!). Also on Wednesday, the sea was relatively calm resulting in a sighting of three Porpoise close in by Burrian and a magnificent group of four Risso's Dolphins porpoising north past Sheep Rock.

Short-toed Surprise

2011-08-08T13:13:00.000+01:00

The day started nicely enough, but the weather gradually deteriorated until a rather unpleasant evening ensued. It’s just kept getting worse and we now have heavy rain and a driving northerly wind, although it does seem to be brightening up as I look out the window, so we may have something to report later.

Sunrise over Buness yesterday morning, a pretty spectacular way to end a Storm Petrel ringing session!

Yesterday’s birds included a Wood Warbler and Whinchat and a variety of waders, but the slightly unexpected star of the show was a Short-toed Lark on the airstrip found by Jason as he completed census. Sadly it didn’t hang around and, by the time I got there, the rain had come in and the lark had rather sensibly done a runner to try to find somewhere with a bit more shelter. Our second Short-toed Lark of the year, this species is more usually associated with May and September/October, so this is an early autumn record (I’d need to check the files properly, but it could be the earliest August on Fair Isle, although two have appeared in July).

It just goes to show that anything is possible on Fair Isle, as we will no doubt find out in the coming weeks…

The only bird of note on the airstrip was this Ruff that flew in whilst we weren't watching the Short-toed Lark.

A Good Night Out!

2011-08-07T04:24:00.001+01:00

Getting in at 4am smelling of sick might not be what you expect of respectable wardening types, but that's what the team have just done. Thankfully, it is the distinctive musty smell of Storm Petrel regurgitations that we are bringing back to the Obs with us, as another successful session saw us bag 53 of these amazing little birds. Star of the show was another Leach’s Petrel, the 6th to be ringed this year on Fair Isle (and the 105th ever for the island). The more I see of them, the more I like them, I think I’d go as far as to say that Leach’s is my favourite bird I’ve ringed this year.

Boom, it's a biggy. Leach's Petrel in the hand.

Competing for star billing tonight was the young Puffin found wandering outside the Obs as we headed out. After a quick visit to the ringing room, it was helped with its fledging by being carried down to North Haven and released on the beach. It’s phenomenal that these birds head out to sea by themselves, with no parents to guide them, and spend the winter on the open ocean.

Good luck little fella.

Another young bird that was seen today was a juvenile Guillemot being accompanied by an adult about five miles north of Fair Isle, the fact that it was the first that the crew of the Good Shepherd have seen this year sums up the sad breeding season that we have had, which is why it is nice that the Puffins are at least fledging a few youngsters now.

Bring on the Autumn!

2011-08-06T23:52:00.000+01:00

The fog finally lifted for a whole day (although it lingered longer on Mainland, meaning the flights were delayed this morning), the sun shone, (almost) all the staff are back and we're ready for the autumn. Don't forget that there are still a few spaces available in the Obs if you're wanting to join us.

Peek-a-boo, can you tell what it is yet?

Our first Wood Warbler of the autumn eventually showed well in the Chalet garden.

A scout around the island today produced Wood Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler, Whinchat, 3 Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Sedge Warbler, 2 Ruff, 3 Green Sandpiper and 25 Golden Plover, whilst a Peacock butterfly found by Henry at Auld Haa had no doubt arrived with the recent minor Painted Lady influx.

Two Grey Heron were also seen arriving from the south this evening as we enjoyed a barbeque at the Puffinn. I've seen Grey Herons heading north out to sea from Aberdeenshire at around this time of year on a few previous occasions, so perhaps these birds had come to us from the UK mainland to enjoy Shetland's relatively mild winters (although they could equally have been circling into the island from somewhere further north).

The conditions have been good for displays of the Northern Lights in recent nights (except for the thick cloud and blanket fog!) but it looks like they're set to be quieter tonight now that it is a bit clearer and we have a chance to see them. Nevermind, we'll hopefully be entertained by Storm Petrels tonight.

A couple of bits of family news, Susannah's sister and her family made it off today after a delayed departure thanks to the fog and we wish them well with two small children on the Northlink ferry with no cabin tonight (having already experienced a 'bumpy' crossing on the Good Shepherd)! It's been lovely to see them and Grace has enjoyed having her two cousins to play with. Grace has also taken to answering her toy phone with 'Hello, it's Susannah, this is the Fair Isle Bird Observatory'. If we can just get her to write people's details on the booking sheets (instead of drawing Peppa Pig in orange crayon), we could make use of her in the office!

No planes, but the fog hasn't stopped everything getting here...

2011-08-05T22:09:00.000+01:00

A good day today (from a birding point of view at least) as the easterly winds of last night switched to strong westerly by this afternoon and the fog finally started to give way to rain. Thanks to the lack of visibility, we've not had planes since Monday, but hopefully transport will be back to normal tomorrow and we'll get the rest of the team back who have been on holiday (even if they do have to come back on the Good Shepherd...).

Wheatears seem to have had a good season, with plenty of juveniles around.

We did manage a brief respite from the fog yesterday afternoon when the sun came out and so the Parnaby family (and visitors) headed off to the beach for a picnic. Considering we are only three minutes walk from the beach, I was still loaded up like a pit pony with coolbox, bags, bucket and spade, travel rug, etc (and binoculars of course). We had a great time though and Grace splashed away like a little selkie and probably would have stayed there all night given the chance.
Anyway, back to the birds. Today saw our first Pied Flycatcher, Reed Warbler and Whinchat of the autumn (the latter of which conveniently found its way into the Hjon Dyke trap) along with a new Black Redstart at the Obs. I must admit I’m not sure if I can contain my excitement for the autumn – it’s only early August and I’m already imagining some of the things that we might see over the coming weeks! There are also reasonable numbers of waders on the go, with Green Sandpipers in several locations, although their flighty nature makes judging numbers difficult, maybe half a dozen birds were involved. Ruff and Greenshank were also in a couple of places and a small group of Teal arrived, whilst Common Gull numbers were probably over 600 (I’ve not added my notebook up yet).

Waders on the move included a group of 12 Whimbrel heading south yesterday over our picnic. Strangely, the formation flock was being led by a Curlew!

Yesterday also saw an arrival of Painted Lady butterflies, always a good sign of migrants on the move. I’d not be surprised if there is something a bit higher up the rarity scale to report soon, stay tuned!

Another bird that seems to have had a good breeding season is Twite, with 60 around the Obs yesterday.

Autumn arrives...

2011-08-03T01:50:00.000+01:00

The Obs is closed for the week, not that it means we've got a week off as there is still plenty to catch up on and plenty to prepare for the autumn, but it does feel like a break in the seasons. Seabird monitoring dominated the work last week but when we are up and running again it will be the time of the migrants to come to the fore.
Waders are currently well represented with Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, three Ruff, three Sanderling, 18 Purple Sandpiper and a Golden Plover joining the regular species in the last couple of days.
Perhaps more exciting though is the appearance of a few passerine species, including the first returning warblers: two Sedge Warblers, a Willow Warbler and a Whitethroat arrived today to join the summering Chiffchaff. Other new arrivals included a Black Redstart and three Common Redpolls at the Obs, whilst a few Swift and House Martins have been seen around the island.

Farewell Summer...

2011-08-01T11:38:00.000+01:00

The end of July sees any lingering doubts amongst the birding world that summer is gone and autumn is here. Breeding bird work is coming to an end, some of our breeding birds have left us (Arctic Terns and Lapwings for example have just about disappeared, although we will expect others to pass through in the autumn) and people's minds are turning to the rares that may appear. We'll expect the first scarcities in a week or so, although with the wind now in the SE and the weather looking rather autumnal, maybe we won't have to wait that long...

After a shaky start, Puffins seemed to have recovered reasonably well and had a better season than the rest of the auks. This youngster on Greenholm is not far off fledging (provided Carrie doesn't take it home with her!).

A couple of good nights of Stormying have seen us get over 100+ Storm Petrels (I know I should call them European Storm-Petrels, but you know what I mean) and two very impressive Leach's on Saturday night. The first was heard calling from the beach for a while before attempts to locate it saw it fly off, circle the tape and head straight into the net. The second (at 2.45am, they tend to arrive later in the night than Stormies) was also heard calling out at sea before circling around us a few times and plopping itself conveniently into the mist net. They really are fantastic birds and I was also impressed with just how loud they are, the call being easily audible at over 200 metres even when we were stood next to the tape blasting out sounds of petrel colonies.
There haven't been too many other bird sightings, although two Ruff yesterday were new in and a sign of birds on the move.
Some non-bird work saw the Obs staff (and a few visitors) out in force for the Sheep Hill, the round up of the hill sheep from the north of the island. It's always a fun day out, although there were a few sore legs the next day from running after rogue sheep up heathery hills. It's great to take part in something that involves the whole island, although whether the sheep that I sheared will be thankful I was there is maybe another matter.

The sheep being rounded up.

Dave Wheeler nervously checks if his yowe's head is still attached.

The Obs is now closed for a week to allow staff to take a well earned break, although Susannah and I will still be here, so hopefully we'll have a few more birds to report. It also means you can start make bookings for accommodation in 2012, just drop us an email or give us a ring.

It's a bird eat bird world out there.

2011-07-29T13:29:00.000+01:00

More work in the Bonxie colonies today where analysing the pellets is throwing up some interesting findings. Although there are many fish and seabirds in the remains, rabbits also feature heavily and a variety of other birds including Starling and Wheatear have turned up. A ring found in a pellet today was from a Kittiwake ringed as a chick on Fair Isle on 7th July 2000, a fascinating, if slightly gruesome, discovery. It will be interesting to find out what differences we may see in the diet of these ultimate pirates if we get a better year for breeding seabirds in 2012.

Although many of the remaining Bonxie chicks are either fledged or very close, there are still a few much younger birds like this little fella.

A few more Storm Petrels were ringed last night, although the night was cut short by the wind that was blowing much stronger in the Havens (where we have our nets) than anywhere else on the island! One of the birds from tonight was already ringed though, and it wasn't one of ours, so it will be interesting to see where that has come from.

Away from birds (sort of), I was pleased to see Fair Isle getting a mention in Birdwatch magazine. Coming hot on the heels of my mention in the blog that there are still spaces at the Obs in August, there was a snippet mentioning the plethora of scarcities that usually turn up at that time of year, not to mention the chance of rarities including Greenish, Melodious and Arctic Warblers, Woodchat Shrike, Thrush Nightingale, Citrine Wagtail, Two-barred Crossbill (all of which have been seen in the last five years, with several records of many of these choice birds) and maybe even something 'bigger' (Hudsonian Whimbrel, Semipalmated Sandpiper and Red-necked Stint are all August finds). With some lingering seabirds, including Gannets and Fulmars still with young, Storm (and hopefully Leach's) Petrel ringing continuing and a chance of cetaceans, August is getting me excited, so I hope to see a few of you here!

In the bag!

2011-07-28T03:34:00.000+01:00

There's still a seabird theme to the week: today was looking at Bonxies (who are maybe not doing quite as badly as I first feared, although it certainly doesn’t look like being a great year) and tonight was ringing Storm Petrels.

Bonxie chick looking pensive.

A reasonable haul of 32 Stormies made for an enjoyable few hours but the highlight was the appearance of a thumping great Leach’s Petrel in the nets. The third of these monster petrels to be ringed here this year landed in the net not far from my head – even in the dark its hefty size was apparent. What a great bird!

Leach's Petrel, superb!

Storm Petrel, not as spectacular but cuter than Leach's. Ringing them is a great way to spend a night.

Not too many other sightings to report today, although a Painted Lady hinted at some migration - but will it be enough to bring a Two-barred Crossbill over tomorrow ...

Ahoy!

2011-07-27T18:06:00.000+01:00

Another week, another load of things to report. It’s perhaps best if I break it up into snippets:

Seabirds:
The last week has seen us continue the Puffin work, with just a hint that maybe things aren’t quite so bad for them as some of the other species, as there are still quite a few chicks surviving in the burrows. It’ll be tough for them though as the food that the adults are bringing in is mostly very small stuff, but with any luck will get some fledging success.

Some of the typical food being brought in at the moment by Puffins, this one was on Buness (photo by Lars Persen)

We have Bonxie chicks on the wing now, although there are lots of signs of cannibalism in the colonies, so obviously things aren’t going so well for them either. Looking at the prey remains in pellets has been fascinating, especially discovering that garfish have bright blue/green bones!
Storm Petrels are being caught in reasonable numbers (last night saw 60+) and another Leach’s found itself in the nets this week.

Other birds:
As you would expect, generally quiet, although a few little highlights including a couple of Sooty Shearwaters and a Fieldfare (on Thursday), so autumn must be here. There are a few commoner waders appearing, an occasional Swift and we have had a few Cuckoo records probably relating to at least two juveniles, one of which sadly was found dead having apparently starved.

This young Cuckoo was in the Obs garden and may have been the bird picked up exhausted at Quoy.

Most of the bird-related conversation is centred around what could turn up in the next few weeks though, looking back at old Annual Reports etc certainly whets the appetite. I’ll post some more details soon, but we do still have a few spaces for guests in the autumn. Although the ‘classic’ Fair Isle late September/early October period is looking pretty much fully booked, you could still visit in Syke’s Warbler season (late August) or from about the 18th October (I might put a list up this week of the birds that have been found on Fair Isle in the last couple of weeks of that rather special month…).

What else?:
Well, in all honesty, it’s been so busy that there is too much to write about. A few highlights:
Susannah and Grace! They made it back on Monday and I’m sure they won’t mind me saying that all my hard work tidying the house while they were gone was undone in about ten minutes!
Tall Ships!
Finding an alarm clock in the loft whilst looking for my old phone to use as an alarm (see last blog entry).
Dolphins! (Risso’s and White-sided seen by the Good Shepherd crew, three White-beaked from South Light for me yesterday).
Hello and Goodbye. We are currently being helped by volunteers Teresa, Virginia and Lena but have said goodbye to two of our domestic staff, Chris and Lindsey. Both have been an extremely valuable part of our team as Susannah and I have learnt the ropes at the Obs and Chris’s cooking has received loads of compliments. We wish them both well in their new adventures and hope to see them back as visitors at some time in the future.
I’ll introduce their replacements in the future, but for now, I’ll make that do.

There are much better shots of Tall Ships, but I thought this one added a certain Pirates of the Caribbean element.

Right, did someone say that there are Two-barred Crossbills on the move in Sweden? We'd best get looking...

A few more pics from recent days.

2011-07-17T12:32:00.000+01:00

Puffin feeding watch - identify the fish that the bird is bringing into the marked burrow.
Try to read the colour rings as well if you get the chance.

Ringing Puffins - can you spot the Wardening team?

Our first Leach's Petrel of the year, caught on 10th July at North Haven. Photographed by William Marsh in front of some green curtains. They are spare curtains that are being used to stop light getting out of the ringing shed (generator shed really, but at night it becomes the ringing shed, there's probably a petrel/petrol joke to be made somewhere in there)and making the nets visible.

The presence of Siskins throughout the summer has been noticeable, with late spring migrants overlapping with the first juveniles appearing. Was this adult male heading north or south when it stopped at Fair Isle though?

The view from the Obs is pretty pleasant and everyone gathered outside to watch the sun setting the other day (today we would settle for just seeing the sun).

Hello Again!

2011-07-17T00:23:00.000+01:00

Finally, I'm back. Sorry for the lack of updates, it's been a busy week and there's so much to catch up with I'm not sure I'll fit it all in here. There's nothing better to encourage a blog post though than driving back from Stackhoull with the shop order and being confronted with a stonking White-winged Black Tern quartering the fields at Setter.

What a stunner! White-winged Black Tern with the Hill Dyke in the background.

Only the third record for Fair Isle (and the first anywhere in Shetland since 2004 I think) it provided stunning views and was a real surprise. Mid-July is not normally renowned for rarities, but with this and the Black-headed Bunting that is still lingering (although only being seen coming into roost at Schoolton) we can't complain! The tern was assumed to be the bird seen on North Ronaldsay last Saturday and Sunday, although a quick look at the pictures on their blog (http://northronbirdobs.blogspot.com/ , which is well worth keeping an eye on) seems to show a bird with slightly more advanced moult around the head, so perhaps the two sightings do relate to different individuals. Unfortunately, by the time I got my camera the bird had moved a field further away, although by that point there were already great pictures taken by Jason and Deryk amongst others, so watch out for them on the sightings page.

Hawking over the fields in a stiff northerly must have made finding food difficult, although despite appearances I don't think this bird had actually taken to swooping on sheep.

We'll get the sightings page updated soon, so I'll not list all the birds and cetaceans that have been seen since my last post, although it is worth noting that today also saw the arrival of at least one (and possibly up to three) Cuckoos, a Mealy Redpoll and a Bar-tailed Godwit in strong easterly winds and rain.

Sadly the weather also saw the delay of the return of Susannah and Grace, so I am still without my family. Hopefully the weather will be better on Monday and they'll be able to come home (possibly with tales of traffic lights, trains, chips and other delights of the mainland). With some of the Tall Ships that are heading to Lerwick due to stop in at Fair Isle on their way past on Monday and Tuesday, we also need the weather to improve for them to be able to stop by (otherwise there's a lot of burgers, scones, pancakes need eating by those of us on the island!).

There has been a lot of seabird work going on this week as well, particularly looking at Puffins. It's still a bit early to say how they'll do, so I'll do an update on seabirds soon, although I fear it won't be pretty reading.

Puffin week! Feeding watches, visiting colonies, colour-rings, trapping, food samples; these little chaps have had no privacy this week!

Well, there's so much more I could say, but I need to find my phone now as without its alarm clock (and with Susannah not here to kick me out of bed at the right time), I'm not sure how I'm going to wake up for early morning traps!

2011-07-05T23:53:00.000+01:00

OK, so it's a few days since an update and there's more to tell you about later, but for now a quick mention of the best birds recently. July opened with a brief Wryneck and a more obliging Rosefinch (which became our fifth to be ringed this year) but the best bird was a male Black-headed Bunting seen by one lucky observer near the plantation on Sunday. Despite running back to the Obs and several people scouring the island for the next couple of days, there was no further sign - until tonight! I'd just handed over the Log to Jason to call and wandered back through the office when the phone went "Black-headed Bunting at Schoolton now, possibly gone to roost in the roses". It was after half past nine, drizzling and looking a wee bit gloomy, so I must admit my hopes weren't very high as we filled the people carrier and transit with almost everyone from the Obs and headed out. Luckily, the bird decided to put on quite a good show, regularly perching on fences, plants and posts and being a most appreciated new bird for several people.
We've presumed it's the same bird, although the conditions were certainly suitable for new arrivals today and as the autumnal easterly winds and light rain continued we were left wondering if it's just a bit too late for something new to arrive, or could this week see something really surprising...

Stonking bird, lousy picture, but it was nearly ten o'clock and raining!

Tystie in North Haven.

Siskin, at least a dozen are now in the Obs garden, including several juveniles - where have they come from?

Baby Snipe!

2011-07-05T17:16:00.000+01:00

Despite the whirlwind events of the Grand Opening, Directors' meeting, AGM, research meeting etc, the lingering memory of the last few days for most will be the Killer Whales in South Harbour on Thursday. Here are a few more pictures and it’s also worth checking out Liz Musser’s fantastic video at http://vimeo.com/25906614. As they (almost) neatly coincided with our Grand Opening, they also received a reasonable amount of press coverage (a quick internet search should reveal a few more pictures and I'm sure Becki will have a few on http://whatevernext-bex.blogspot.com/ soon as well).

More updates on recent sightings etc to come soon…

Killer Whales, killer views!

2011-06-30T16:04:00.000+01:00

Perhaps more so than any other call, the cry of 'Killer Whales!' down the phone is guaranteed to empty the Obs. Soup was left cooling in the bowls as Will's shift during the 24 hour Guillemot feeding watch was interrupted by a group of Orca offshore from Roskillie. Soon there were people dashing about all over the place as the animals showed incredibly well then made their way to the south of the island where the rounders match was temporarily abandoned and the island kids got to join in the excitement. After a prolonged show, they headed south out to sea. Wow.

A big bull Killer Whale being followed by two synchronised females as they head between Buness and Sheep Rock

The group (minus the bull who remained distantly offshore) then came into South Harbour where they were hunting seals, although apparently without success.

Summer Sun.

2011-06-29T01:15:00.000+01:00

We hear that there's a heatwave in parts of the country? It's not quite reached that up here (in fact yesterday, at 12.1 degrees, Fair Isle was the coolest place in Britain) but as Dave Wheeler the island's resident weatherman has pointed out, we reached a very warm and pleasant 14 degrees today with 14 hours of warm sunshine and the island is looking generally beautiful. We look set to get a few more days of good weather yet, so hopefully everything will run smoothly for the official opening on Saturday.

Strange lumpy clouds yesterday that look like they've crashed into something on the horizon and are piling up.

Today saw much bluer skies with just the odd wisp overhead.

Bird wise it is about as quiet as would be expected at this time of year, although a few birds are obviously starting to move south with juvenile Cuckoo (on Sunday) and five young Siskins (today) showing the wonders of migration. These birds would have been eggs a few weeks ago, probably in a nest in Scandinavia and yet are now crossing the North Sea by themselves (and in the case of the Cuckoo at least, without anyone to tell it where to go).

Spot the Wardens. Will and Jason counting gull nests on Goorn (notice the angry gulls overhead).

Home sweet home. The Obs in its peaceful and picturesque setting.

Tonight saw one of the big events of the year with the school's end of term concert - a fantastic showing of music, singing and various other talents from the kids and a chance to wish good luck to those who are moving on to Anderson High in Lerwick next year. The packed hall (I didn't get an exact count, but there were more people in the audience than live on the island) all appreciated the pupil's efforts, whilst I surely wasn't the only one to marvel at the Lego electric guitar!

Grace enjoyed the concert!

It might be a little while until the next update as the next few days are bound to be busy, but who knows, maybe I'll be able to report something interesting turning up soon (it felt like Bee-eater weather today!).

Incoming!

2011-06-26T10:17:00.000+01:00

A bright start to yesterday gave way to blustery SE winds and persistent rain, far more autumnal than summer weather (but then we are past the longest day I suppose). This morning is much birghter, but there is nothing new in to report so far. Perhaps the big one is lurking out there somewhere though...

An entertaining check of the breeding bonxies yesterday saw me take a couple of mighty boots to the head, the first time I've had a proper kicking off them. For those that haven't had the pleasure, it's certainly a good deterrent measure when it comes to protecting their eggs and chicks!

Feet down ready to kick, screaming and generally appearing as a terrifying 'tank of a bird' (good description Jason!).

That's what all the fuss is about, a Bonxie chick.

No 'arm done! *

2011-06-24T17:09:00.000+01:00

There’s been a bit of drama for the family today when a slip from Grace saw her unable to use her right elbow properly and leaving her in some discomfort. The good folk at Direct Flight managed to squeeze Susannah and Grace onto the flight to Lerwick this morning and the Doctors popped the ligaments back into place. They’re both back on the island in time for tonight’s Fair Isle Thursday (it’s always a Fair Isle Thursday, whatever day it is actually on) with a talk by Dave Wheeler about the landscapes of Fair Isle and music from Fridarey, always an entertaining night.

Grace putting her newly fixed arm to good use.

Seabird work continues at full throttle (although that’s perhaps not the best phrase to describe the boat work as the Zodiac’s engine seems a bit temperamental at best), although still with the same sad results of dying auk chicks and virtually absent Shags.

A long way down (and back up again).
South Naaversgill as viewed from the bottom.

Searching for seabird nests.

Jason reflects on another job well done.

A female Red-backed Shrike at Barkland yesterday was the latest scarcity to turn up and today’s sightings included a rather unseasonal Redwing. More south-easterly winds are forecast for tomorrow, so perhaps there’s still time for something else…

* Punny headline © my Grandpa Parnaby!

2011-06-23T10:47:00.000+01:00

The summer days continue with more seabird work, although yesterday was a slightly depressing one as it became apparent that Shag numbers in the population plots are well down and that the auks are struggling, with a number of dead and dying Guillemot and Razorbill chicks found.

Migration is not quite at an end, with Blackcap and Spotted Flycatcher both caught and ringed yesterday and the trap rounds always throw up the chance of a good catch of Starlings, with the youngsters not yet as smart as the adult birds in avoiding the traps.

It’s also busy around the Obs as we prepare for our ‘official opening’ in just over a week’s time. Thankfully, with such a new building handed over to us in such a good condition by Hollie and Deryk, there aren’t many big jobs that need doing (although an official opening in the winter would have meant it didn’t clash with such a busy time for guests and seabird work!). One of the remaining tasks has been installing Sheila Scott’s artwork in the Visitor Centre, it’s looking really good in there now, so I’ll get some pictures posted when it’s all finished.

In the meantime, there are seabirds to count, migrants to look for and grounds to be tidied, so I’d best be off.

Charlotte (our domestic volunteer) and Ed do a great job in the garden and, who knows, maybe the blue overall look will catch on down south when Charlotte heads home?

Moon over Sheep Rock, despite the Simmer Dim, we still get a bit of nightime here.

The Longest Day.

2011-06-22T23:51:00.000+01:00

Midsummer on Fair Isle, the party rages on at South Light, although without the wardens who are rather caught up in the seabird season, so have all chickened out early! We’re slowly ticking off the list of jobs as the summer progresses, with the good news coming from Gannets and Fulmars, both of which have shown population increases. Not all species are doing so well though; I watched a young Kittiwake today pecking repeatedly at its parent’s bill hoping for food. It’s prospects looked bleak at best, not least as its sibling was already lying dead in the nest beside it. As a Warden it’s hard to watch this kind of thing. The flat calm sea, with virtually no birds fishing in it told its own story and really should make people think about what we’re doing to our most valuable habitat.

On a slightly more cheery note, migration is continuing slowly with the occasional new migrant still being pulled out the traps including two Marsh Warblers this week, one of which has spent a few nights singing in the Observatory garden.

This Fair Isle Wren has been singing its heart out on the Obs fence recently, as the staff whose windows face out onto its territory will tell you!

Vaadal do nicely.

2011-06-18T15:33:00.000+01:00

The Hobby, Turtle Dove and Mealy Redpoll all remain, a breeding plumaged Great Northern Diver was in South Harbour but bird of the day (so far) is the young female Bluethroat caught in the Vaadal trap.

Jason admiring the Bluethroat (or is it the other way round?).

There's a cocktail party at the Obs tonight, but hopefully there will be some more birds to report before then.

2011-06-18T02:08:00.000+01:00

A dreadful day's weather on Thursday will not have helped the breeding birds, although today was quite the reverse with a beautiful sunny day with just a hint of easterly wind. A small movement of birds saw several skeins of Greylag head south, our first Tufted Ducks of June appear, the first Bar-tailed Godwit of the year over Meoness and a small fall of migrants with Reed Warbler (singing in the Obs garden) and Mealy Redpoll the highlights amongst a scattering of common warblers. The day felt as though a biggy should have turned up, but the lingering Hobby and Turtle Dove were the closest we got.
Maalie counting continues apace; with 27,000 pairs last time, we know we have got a lot of work to do. Regular seabird monitoring continues, with plenty of that still to come as well. Puffins are starting to put on much better performances for visitors now, so we should also start to get more colour-ring sightings. Breeding bird news includes our first Eider ducklings of the year seen on Thursday.

Time for a nap, a Herring Gull chick looks exhausted after emerging from its egg.

Turtle Power. First seen on Meoness on Wednesday this Turtle Dove was showing well in the Lower Stoneybrek crop strip today.

Even when there are few migrants around, there is plenty to see, with the island being a beautiful place to live and work. It's hard to capture it all in pictures (you really have to come and see for yourself!), but here are a few images from the last few days.

The Thrift is putting on a fantastic display; the football pitch near South Light is the pinkest one I have ever seen!

A misty evening over the west cliffs.

The sun setting as viewed from the base of Malcolm's Head.

Finally, I'd just like to mention a couple of words about Billy Shiel, the boatman of the Farne Islands in Northumberland, who sadly passed away in the early hours of Friday morning (see http://farnephoto.blogspot.com/). Many people who are interested in Fair Isle will also have been to the Farnes and may well have met Billy. It was a privilege to have known him in my years working there, he was a character in every sense of the word and his passing has left a gap that will never quite be filled. Our sincere condolences to his family.

Arrivals continue.

2011-06-16T12:11:00.000+01:00

A busy day of seabird work, but a few new birds in, with my highlight being a Hobby that whizzed underneath me as I stoon on the cliffs at Furse. The steady easterly breeze hinted at birds coming in and a Turtle Dove at Meoness was certainly a new arrival. An unstreaked Acrocephalus warbler at Chalet proved elusive although a brief snatch of song hinted at Reed rather than Marsh.

After many hours wandering and miles covered, it turned out that my best birding came from the van as I headed home from counting Fulmars in South Harbour. The Turtle Dove relocated to the road at Quoy, the Acro was seen briefly at Chalet, the Woodchat reappeared on the road at Field and the Hobby was found on a fencepost near the Shrike, not a bad few minute's driving!

Yesterday's Woodchat remained, but didn't show itself until 6pm when it was in the Field area again.

A Hobby fly past at Furse was all too brief, but the bird was relocated near Field later.

You aint seen me, roit? Ringed Plover chick hiding near Wirvie Burn.

Away from the migrants, it was pleasing to spend the day wandering amongst baby birds on the uplands, with Wheatears, Meadow Pipits and Twite families abounding and careful searching amongst the heather finding Bonxie chicks and a variety of waders - all very pleasant.
The day ended with the breeze still blowing steadily from the east, so more birds are certainly possible, perhaps the switch back to westerlies on Friday will perform the usual trick of dropping something unusual in.

How much wood could a woodchat chat, if a woodchat could chat wood.

2011-06-15T00:48:00.000+01:00

Inner Stack from the North, how many Gannet nests can you count?

A busy time with seabird work continuing in between bouts of ferocious weather (lashing NE winds and rain can't be good for the nesting birds). Various productivity counts and population plots are continuing but the Gannet count is more or less over for the year, with the 4,000 pair barrier being broken for the first time on Fair Isle.

A happy twitch.

The easterly winds have also meant that we've been trying to make sure we get birding as much as possible in the hope of some more late migrants. The Blyth's Reed wasn't seen again, although three Marsh Warblers have put in an appearance during the last few days (including a ringed bird at the Obs that was presumably the one we'd trapped a few days earlier but had remained hidden in between appearances).

Star bird though was found this afternoon, when Will discovered a Woodchat Shrike at Chalet just before dinner. After disappearing for a while and disrupting the meal whilst it was searched for, it then reappeared just in time to disrupt Log as well - not that anybody was complaining as everyone enjoyed good views at Field.

Another new species was added to the year list when a Shoveler was seen at Utra scrapes although a Bar-headed Goose nearby failed to pass the test as a wild vagrant. The wind is back in the east tomorrow, hopefully not enough to stop the Good Shepherd sailing (we need the food order to come in!), but perhaps enough for a few more birds. Will the spring migration have time to stop before the autumn migration starts this year?!

Trap Happy!

2011-06-11T01:20:00.000+01:00

Blyth's Reed Warbler in the hand (photo: Will Miles). Beautiful? We think so!

A day of Breeding Bird Survey, Guillemot monitoring, Fulmar monitoring, census and even a cheeky, but totally unproductive seawatch, saw us all kept rather busy. In amongst this were a great selection of birds, with the list slowly building through the day and the highlights including Blyth's Reed Warbler, Greenish Warbler, Icterine Warbler and two each of Black Redstart, Cuckoo and Quail.

The Heligoland traps have been busy today, with a recent quiet spell brought to an end with the trapping of an eclectic mix including the BRW, Cuckoo, Collared Dove, Mealy Redpoll, Redwing, a few Spotted Flycatchers and a Lesser Whitethroat. Most of them were 'bycatch' as Johan attempted to catch Starlings as part of his research, his patience was finally rewarded when he caught a few of his target species this evening!
It was Jason though who was the lucky Warden to pull the rarity out of the box though, as his solitary trap round was the one that produced the Blyth’s. It was instantly suspected as this species, but the name was barely whispered until the measurements confirmed it. Soon the red flag was flying as we rounded up guests and islanders to enjoy views in the hand. It was seen again briefly in the garden this evening, hopefully tomorrow will produce some decent field views.
With the wind forecast to be still in the east for a few days at least, perhaps there may be a few more good birds turning up – or is that just being greedy?

Going Greenish

2011-06-09T19:29:00.000+01:00

After a few days of easterly, the wind has switched to the southwest and, as is often the way on Fair Isle, it is this change of wind direction that drops a few birds in. Tommy at Auld Haa phoned to say he had an Icterine Warbler and a phyllosc with wing bars in his garden. A few minutes later and Jason was on the scene to confirm Tommy's suspicions - Greenish Warbler! The bird showed well as it followed a feeding circuit around the front and back of Haa and across to Skerryholm. At one point it was chased off by the Icterine Warbler - they were the only two warblers I saw in the garden on my visit down there, a very Fair Isle experience! Another Icterine Warbler turned up at South Naaversgill and other birds today included Crossbill and Short-eared Owl, whilst a male Bluethroat was found yesterday by one of the islanders (seven year old Robyn!).

A lucky shot as it bounced past briefly alighting on a fence.

The supercilium meeting in front of the eye is a good ID pointer and this bird was also heard calling.

Ahoy there!

2011-06-09T13:48:00.000+01:00

A slightly belated happy birthday to the FIBO Administrator (and my wife!) Susannah, who celebrated on Tuesday by getting up at 6am to prepare breakfast for guests leaving on the Good Shepherd and then had a full day of work in the kitchen, office and hall (setting up a stall for Becki and Charlotte to sell FIBO wares to the visiting cruise ship).

Busy waters as a cruise ship unloads its passengers by Zodiac shortly after the arrival of the Good Shepherd.

The evening was a bit different though as at 5.55pm we dashed out of the kitchen, brushed the chapatti flour off Susannah’s face and joined Frideray (the band based on Fair Isle) and Jimmy and Florrie Stout on a Zodiac to head out to the Clipper Odyssey.

The Clipper Odyssey awaits the arrivals from Fair Isle, we were even piped on board (with an enthusiastic, but random, selection of tunes that were not all appreciated by the ship's crew who had perhaps heard them a few too many times already!)

Frideray performing.

This rather nice cruise ship had sent around 100 guests from the travel company Adventure Canada ashore earlier in the day to enjoy Fair Isle. They all had a wonderful time finding out about the island's traditions, crafts, history and culture as well as getting some fantastic close ups of Puffins and even the Fair Isle Wren for a few of the keener birders. They were a lovely bunch of people and we all thoroughly enjoyed the evening of music, food, information and hospitality we received on board.

A happy Susannah heading home.

The following day they were due to explore the Aberdeenshire coast, landing just a few miles from where Susannah and I used to live! Thanks for the lovely evening guys and we hope the rest of your cruise went well.

An Australian couple on a Canadian voyage off Fair Isle, who own a car built in my home city of Sunderland! We were invited onto their table for dinner and had a very pleasant chat about everything from potato diseases to eating roadkill kangaroo! The tartan clothing was for a 'theme night' and the rather natty Fair Isle knitwear headband had just been bought from Hollie Shaw.

On the island, the spring migration has slowed down, although the easterly winds have kept our spirits high for something still to arrive. A Marsh Warbler was trapped earlier in the week, although this was perhaps slightly overshadowed by a Great Reed Warbler to the north of us and a Blyth’s Reed Warbler to the south (see the North Ron blog). Perhaps slightly more galling was the White-throated Robin in County Durham, I had that species as my prediction for one of Fair Isle’s big birds this year. The fact that it chose to turn up 20 miles from my home city (and I’ve had the usual messages from friends who have been to see it!) didn’t help. Still, as Jason pointed out, the rest of the UK is a big place and we can’t expect all the birds to turn up on Fair Isle!

Bon Voyage, the Clipper heads south.